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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: stick · spring · pass · game · perch · rash · shower · hand

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. spring — the season
  3. shower — to wash
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. game — a match
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. pass — a permit
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. perch — the fish
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. rash — hasty
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. spring — of water
  18. shower — rain
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — a series
  22. hand — help
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. spring — a coil

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