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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 116 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: stand · sharp · bank · file · board · net · band · court

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. sharp — clever
  3. stand — to bear
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. net — in sport
  6. file — a tool
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. court — of law
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. bank — for money
  11. court — of a king
  12. board — to get on
  13. net — for catching
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. bank — of a river
  16. file — a document
  17. band — a ring
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. file — a line of people
  20. court — for sport
  21. band — a music group
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. net — after costs
  24. bank — for money

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