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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 120 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: net · kid · safe · board · sharp · club · rock · row

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. kid — to tease
  3. club — for golf
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. rock — music
  7. net — for catching
  8. club — a group
  9. board — a committee
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. sharp — clever
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — in sport
  17. rock — a stone
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. row — a line
  20. kid — child
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. board — to get on
  24. row — to paddle

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