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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: race · bowl · staff · straw · perch · hide

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. staff — employees
  6. perch — the fish
  7. race — humankind
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. staff — employees
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. staff — a stick
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. straw — dry grass

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