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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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Word bank
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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: tube · coach · ground · cap · pitcher · date · clip · board

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. board — to get on
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cap — of ice
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. cap — a lid
  13. ground — the earth
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. ground — crushed
  16. tube — a container
  17. clip — to cut
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. ground — a position
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. clip — a video
  23. date — the fruit
  24. tube — the underground

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