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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 · row · firm · kick · rash · last · straw

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. rush — hurry
  3. row — a line
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. rash — hasty
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. row — to paddle
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. last — final
  11. last — to go on
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — steady
  15. firm — decided
  16. kick — in football
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. board — to get on
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. last — finally
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. board — a committee

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