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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 · row · race · net · bay · charge · drill · pop

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. charge — a price
  3. board — a committee
  4. pop — soda
  5. drill — army training
  6. board — to get on
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. row — a line
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. charge — in control
  12. charge — electricity
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — humankind
  15. row — to paddle
  16. drill — a practice
  17. net — for catching
  18. pop — to visit
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. net — after costs
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. race — the arms race
  24. net — in sport

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