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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 116 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: cold · lash · perch · stand · present · rash · tube · race

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. race — humankind
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. tube — a container
  6. rash — hasty
  7. race — the arms race
  8. present — the time now
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. race — a contest
  14. stand — to bear
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. present — a gift
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. cold — an illness
  19. cold — not warm
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. tube — the underground
  22. rash — a series
  23. perch — the fish
  24. present — there

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