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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: rush · board · row · march · craft · perch · scale · wound

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. march — the month
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. scale — in music
  5. march — the month
  6. row — a line
  7. scale — size or range
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. march — music
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. row — to paddle
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. craft — a skill
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. board — a committee
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. craft — boats
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. perch — the fish
  24. board — to get on

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