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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.

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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: swing · board · pit · row · wax · stock · patient · bowl

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. board — a committee
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. wax — to grow
  6. swing — in golf
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. swing — to play on
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. stock — shares
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. row — a line
  17. pit — a hole
  18. board — to get on
  19. swing — music
  20. pit — in a race
  21. row — to paddle
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. stock — goods

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