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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: face · rule · race · bowl · pound · band · bulb · last

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — government
  4. face — to point toward
  5. pound — a weight
  6. face — to confront
  7. last — final
  8. face — part of the head
  9. bulb — for light
  10. last — finally
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. race — humankind
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. last — to go on
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. band — a ring
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. rule — a law
  22. race — the arms race
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. bowl — a football final

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