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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 116 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: drill · land · lean · craft · season · row · board · band

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. row — a line
  3. craft — a skill
  4. land — ground
  5. drill — the tool
  6. band — a ring
  7. land — a country
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. band — a music group
  13. land — to come down
  14. drill — a practice
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. board — to get on
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. row — to paddle
  19. season — of the year
  20. lean — to bend
  21. drill — army training
  22. lean — thin
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. craft — boats

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