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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: shower · safe · pit · roll · bowl · track · board · tear

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. track — a song
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. pit — in a race
  8. tear — from crying
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. track — a path
  12. roll — a list
  13. roll — a cake
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. board — to get on
  19. track — to keep track
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tear — from crying
  22. shower — to wash
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. shower — rain

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