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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: rock · drill · chest · cue · board · chip · prune · race

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. board — to get on
  3. drill — army training
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. drill — the tool
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cue — a signal
  10. rock — a stone
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. chip — to eat
  13. prune — to trim
  14. chest — of your body
  15. race — a contest
  16. cue — for pool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. rock — music
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. race — humankind
  21. race — the arms race
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — for betting
  24. prune — to trim

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