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

Word bank: wind · stock · rule · present · fall · race

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. fall — to drop
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. present — a gift
  6. rule — a law
  7. stock — shares
  8. fall — to drop
  9. present — the time now
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. fall — the season
  12. race — humankind
  13. present — there
  14. wind — moving air
  15. stock — goods
  16. wind — moving air
  17. rule — government
  18. stock — a soup base

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