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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: kick · bowl · board · fall · rule · row · ground · chest

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. chest — a box
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. kick — in football
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. chest — of your body
  8. board — to get on
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. ground — the earth
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. row — a line
  16. rule — a law
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. rule — government
  19. board — a committee
  20. row — to paddle
  21. fall — the season
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. ground — a position
  24. bowl — to roll

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