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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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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: wind · land · calf · race · mine · object · foot · rule

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. wind — moving air
  3. race — a contest
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. land — a country
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. race — the arms race
  10. object — an aim
  11. rule — a law
  12. object — a thing
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. foot — a measure
  15. wind — moving air
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. rule — government
  18. object — to protest
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — ground
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mine — an explosive

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