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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 120 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 · suit · wound · rest · shower · wind · lean · row

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. row — a line
  4. race — humankind
  5. race — a contest
  6. suit — in cards
  7. row — to paddle
  8. suit — to fit
  9. rest — a break
  10. shower — to wash
  11. race — the arms race
  12. lean — thin
  13. wind — moving air
  14. suit — clothes
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. lean — to bend
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. wound — an injury
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. rest — what's left
  21. shower — rain
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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