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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: fall · board · face · rule · spring · bowl

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. board — to get on
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — the season
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. face — to point toward
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. board — a committee
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. rule — government
  15. rule — a law
  16. spring — the season
  17. face — to confront
  18. face — part of the head

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