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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · wave · board · row · net · court · pitcher · lash

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. mate — a partner
  3. net — for catching
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. board — a committee
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. court — of law
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. mate — to breed
  15. row — a line
  16. mate — a friend
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. board — to get on
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. court — of a king
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — after costs

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