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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: suit · board · row · degree · net · kid · band · last

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. suit — in cards
  3. degree — from a university
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. board — a committee
  6. row — a line
  7. board — to get on
  8. band — a ring
  9. row — to paddle
  10. kid — to tease
  11. degree — temperature
  12. last — finally
  13. net — after costs
  14. suit — to fit
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — in sport
  17. degree — an amount
  18. suit — clothes
  19. last — to go on
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. last — final
  23. kid — child
  24. band — a rubber band

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