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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: tear · race · nail · perch · net · spell · straw · mine

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. tear — to rip
  3. perch — the fish
  4. tear — from crying
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. race — the arms race
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. net — after costs
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. spell — magic
  12. race — a contest
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. mine — for digging
  20. spell — letters
  21. spell — a short time
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — in sport
  24. tear — from crying

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