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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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Word bank
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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 · land · race · leaves · board · cap · lean · ground

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. lean — thin
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. cap — of ice
  5. land — a country
  6. land — to come down
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. fall — to drop
  10. race — the arms race
  11. ground — a position
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. cap — a hat
  14. land — ground
  15. board — to get on
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — the season
  18. race — humankind
  19. race — a contest
  20. cap — a lid
  21. lean — to bend
  22. ground — the earth
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. board — a committee

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