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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: race · perch · lean · rash · content · straw · club · fall

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. lean — to bend
  4. fall — to drop
  5. rash — a series
  6. content — the amount
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. rash — hasty
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. fall — to drop
  11. club — for dancing
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. fall — the season
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. race — the arms race
  16. content — happy
  17. race — humankind
  18. club — a group
  19. club — for golf
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — the fish
  24. lean — thin

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