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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: bat · bore · bound · net · cell · roll · rule · race

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. bore — to drill
  3. net — after costs
  4. bat — the animal
  5. net — for catching
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. race — humankind
  9. rule — a law
  10. cell — a phone
  11. race — a contest
  12. bound — obliged
  13. rule — government
  14. net — in sport
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bound — certain
  18. race — the arms race
  19. cell — in biology
  20. bore — to tire
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. roll — a list
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bound — tied together

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