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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: wind · bound · board · sharp · fall · perch · racket · row

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. fall — the season
  3. board — a committee
  4. row — a line
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bound — certain
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. board — to get on
  11. row — to paddle
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bound — obliged
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. fall — to drop
  20. wind — moving air
  21. perch — the fish
  22. sharp — clever
  23. fall — to drop
  24. sharp — exactly

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