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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: bay · game · bound · row · fan · prune · board · land

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. board — to get on
  4. bound — certain
  5. row — a line
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. game — a match
  8. bound — tied together
  9. land — ground
  10. bound — obliged
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. board — a committee
  14. land — to come down
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. land — a country
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. row — to paddle
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — to trim
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. game — a kind of play
  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