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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. root — of a word
  6. rule — government
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. mate — a partner
  12. root — the cause
  13. band — a ring
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. rule — a law
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. root — of a plant
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. wound — an injury
  20. band — a music group
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a friend

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