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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: drill · board · safe · band · kick · rush · march · chair

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. band — a ring
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. rush — hurry
  7. chair — a leader
  8. board — a committee
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. drill — a practice
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. board — to get on
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. march — the month
  19. band — a music group
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. kick — in football
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — the tool

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