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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. race — humankind
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. file — a document
  7. lean — to bend
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — army training
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. drill — the tool
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. snap — to click
  16. perch — the fish
  17. race — the arms race
  18. file — a tool
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. file — a line of people
  21. rush — hurry
  22. race — a contest
  23. lean — thin
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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