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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: rash · chair · bore · swing · bear · scale · perch · race

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. swing — to play on
  4. scale — size or range
  5. bore — to tire
  6. rash — a series
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bore — to drill
  9. chair — a leader
  10. race — humankind
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. rash — hasty
  15. scale — in music
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — the arms race
  18. swing — music
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. swing — in golf

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