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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 120 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: board · rock · wound · mine · race · cabinet · spell · saw

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. spell — letters
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. spell — magic
  8. board — to get on
  9. race — a contest
  10. wound — an injury
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — the tool
  14. race — the arms race
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rock — music
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. rock — a stone
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. board — a committee
  22. race — humankind
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. cabinet — ministers

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