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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 124 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: bat · rule · race · stand · bowl · lash

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. 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. lash — to lash out
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. rule — government
  4. race — a contest
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. bat — the animal
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. rule — a law
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. race — the arms race
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. stand — to bear
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. 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