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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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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 · board · march · race · land · kid · fork · bass

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. board — to get on
  3. kid — to tease
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bass — low music
  6. land — a country
  7. land — to come down
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. march — the month
  10. board — a committee
  11. march — the month
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. race — humankind
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. fork — in a road
  17. kid — child
  18. race — the arms race
  19. row — a line
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. land — ground
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. race — a contest
  24. march — music

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