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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: tear · board · rash · pop · row · stick · rule · bass

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. pop — music
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. tear — to rip
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. rule — government
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. rash — hasty
  10. board — to get on
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rash — a series
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bass — the fish
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. bass — low music
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pop — soda
  22. board — a committee
  23. row — a line
  24. rule — a law

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