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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: rock · object · cold · bowl · race · wind · kick · pass

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rock — a stone
  6. race — the arms race
  7. wind — moving air
  8. object — to protest
  9. rock — music
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. race — a contest
  12. object — a thing
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. cold — an illness
  15. wind — moving air
  16. object — an aim
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. kick — in football
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. race — humankind
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. cold — not warm

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