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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: club · clip · bowl · row · rock · ruler

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — for dancing
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. clip — for paper
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. clip — to cut
  8. club — a group
  9. row — a line
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. rock — a stone
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. rock — music
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. row — to paddle
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. clip — a video

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