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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: drill · race · face · perch · ground · leaves · bound · kick

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. ground — crushed
  4. bound — tied together
  5. race — a contest
  6. bound — obliged
  7. bound — certain
  8. face — to confront
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. drill — the tool
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — army training
  16. ground — the earth
  17. race — humankind
  18. ground — a position
  19. face — part of the head
  20. kick — in football
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. race — the arms race
  24. face — to point toward

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