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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: rush · stock · can · game · land · perch · nail · race

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — a tin
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. land — a country
  7. race — a contest
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. rush — hurry
  10. land — to come down
  11. game — wild animals
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. game — a match
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. can — to be able to
  19. stock — goods
  20. race — the arms race
  21. race — humankind
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. stock — shares
  24. perch — for a bird

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