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

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. fall — the season
  3. rule — government
  4. fall — to drop
  5. face — to point toward
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. board — a committee
  10. rule — a law
  11. board — to get on
  12. fall — to drop
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. spring — the season
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. face — part of the head
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. spring — of water
  22. drill — army training
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. face — to confront

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