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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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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: object · bowl · race · row · fall · cabinet · tube · chest

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. chest — of your body
  3. race — a contest
  4. object — to protest
  5. row — to paddle
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. fall — the season
  8. race — humankind
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. fall — to drop
  12. chest — of your body
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. fall — to drop
  16. object — an aim
  17. object — a thing
  18. tube — a container
  19. chest — a box
  20. race — the arms race
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. tube — the underground
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. row — a line

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