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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: rock · race · fork · spring · net · rash · roll · pass

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — the season
  3. net — in sport
  4. rock — music
  5. net — after costs
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. race — humankind
  8. pass — a permit
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. roll — a list
  13. rash — a series
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. net — for catching
  16. fork — in a road
  17. rock — a stone
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. roll — a cake
  20. rash — hasty
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. race — the arms race
  23. race — a contest
  24. spring — of water

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