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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: row · bowl · coach · board · lie · race · stick · pitch

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. row — a line
  6. lie — to recline
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. race — a contest
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. board — a committee
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. pitch — completely
  14. board — to get on
  15. row — to paddle
  16. race — humankind
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. race — the arms race
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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