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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
468
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: mate · patient · pound · ball · board · rash · band · row

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. board — a committee
  5. band — a music group
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. ball — a dance
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. mate — a partner
  14. board — to get on
  15. mate — a friend
  16. rash — a series
  17. mate — to breed
  18. rash — hasty
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. row — a line
  21. row — to paddle
  22. pound — a weight
  23. band — a ring
  24. board — a flat piece

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