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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: game · firm · row · charge · stock · rock · court · club

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. row — a line
  3. game — a match
  4. charge — a price
  5. charge — in control
  6. firm — decided
  7. stock — goods
  8. court — of law
  9. court — for sport
  10. club — for golf
  11. firm — a company
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. charge — electricity
  16. stock — shares
  17. rock — music
  18. club — a group
  19. club — for dancing
  20. rock — a stone
  21. court — of a king
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. game — wild animals

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