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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: rule · bore · clip · race · ball · board · shower · bass

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. board — a committee
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. race — a contest
  6. ball — a great time
  7. race — humankind
  8. bass — the fish
  9. ball — a dance
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. race — the arms race
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bass — low music
  14. board — to get on
  15. shower — to wash
  16. clip — for paper
  17. bore — to tire
  18. clip — a video
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. bore — to drill
  21. rule — government
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. shower — rain
  24. bass — the instrument

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