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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: perch · cold · suit · wound · bowl · bank · kid · race

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bank — of a river
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. suit — in cards
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. race — the arms race
  7. bank — for money
  8. suit — to fit
  9. race — humankind
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bank — for money
  15. perch — the fish
  16. wound — an injury
  17. kid — child
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. race — a contest
  21. suit — clothes
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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