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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. board — a committee
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. rule — a law
  5. cold — an illness
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. spring — a coil
  10. board — to get on
  11. race — a contest
  12. spring — the season
  13. cold — not warm
  14. race — the arms race
  15. spring — of water
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. rule — government
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. race — humankind

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