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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: cold · arm · ball · straw · root · rule · rush · bowl

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. root — of a word
  7. ball — a dance
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. root — of a plant
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. ball — a great time
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. cold — not warm
  15. root — the cause
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. rule — a law
  18. rush — hurry
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rule — government
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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