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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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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: chip · row · board · drill · rash · kid · club · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. club — a group
  3. club — for dancing
  4. chip — for betting
  5. club — for golf
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. drill — a practice
  8. board — a committee
  9. board — to get on
  10. row — to paddle
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. chip — to eat
  14. last — final
  15. kid — child
  16. rash — a series
  17. last — to go on
  18. kid — to tease
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — the tool
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. row — a line
  24. rash — hasty

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