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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: can · lean · board · race · roll · game · land · cold

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. game — a match
  3. land — ground
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. cold — an illness
  6. land — to come down
  7. land — a country
  8. roll — a list
  9. race — a contest
  10. roll — a cake
  11. game — wild animals
  12. lean — to bend
  13. can — to be able to
  14. board — a committee
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. can — a tin
  17. can — a tin
  18. cold — not warm
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. lean — thin
  21. race — humankind
  22. race — the arms race
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. board — to get on

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