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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: lie · race · roll · pitch · bound · land · bowl · spell

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. lie — to recline
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. land — ground
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. spell — letters
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. spell — magic
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. roll — a cake
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. roll — a list
  13. land — to come down
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. race — humankind
  16. pitch — completely
  17. bound — certain
  18. race — a contest
  19. bound — tied together
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. spell — a short time
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bound — obliged
  24. race — the arms race

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