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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: board · wind · staff · foot · rock · bat · craft · present

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. present — a gift
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. staff — employees
  6. present — there
  7. craft — boats
  8. board — a committee
  9. rock — music
  10. staff — employees
  11. rock — a stone
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. bat — the animal
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. foot — a measure
  18. present — the time now
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. craft — a skill
  24. staff — a stick

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com