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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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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: race · present · staff · bowl · kick · rule

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. kick — in football
  4. present — a gift
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. rule — government
  10. present — there
  11. staff — employees
  12. rule — a law
  13. staff — a stick
  14. race — humankind
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — the arms race
  17. present — the time now
  18. staff — employees

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