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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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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: row · club · band · ground · cap · patient · hand · roll

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  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. row — to paddle
  2. ground — the earth
  3. cap — of ice
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a ring
  6. club — for golf
  7. hand — help
  8. club — a group
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. ground — a position
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. cap — a lid
  14. roll — a cake
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. ground — crushed
  17. cap — a hat
  18. roll — a list
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. club — for dancing
  21. row — a line
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. hand — in cards
  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