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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: board · rush · wake · land · rule · club · bat · charge

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. wake — a trail
  3. rush — hurry
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. board — a committee
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. bat — the animal
  8. club — a group
  9. board — to get on
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. land — to come down
  15. rule — government
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. club — for golf
  18. rule — a law
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. charge — electricity
  21. land — ground
  22. club — for dancing
  23. charge — in control
  24. charge — a price

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