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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: kick · row · bowl · pitcher · spell · bound · rule · mine

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bound — certain
  4. mine — for digging
  5. spell — a short time
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. row — a line
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. spell — magic
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. spell — letters
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bound — obliged
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. kick — in football
  20. bound — tied together
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — a law

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