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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: race · bore · board · ball · swing · fall · vault · lean

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. board — a committee
  3. lean — to bend
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bore — to drill
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. fall — to drop
  9. board — to get on
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. lean — thin
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. bore — to tire
  14. ball — a dance
  15. vault — a safe
  16. fall — the season
  17. ball — a great time
  18. swing — to play on
  19. race — humankind
  20. swing — music
  21. swing — in golf
  22. fall — to drop
  23. race — a contest
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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