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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: march · wind · perch · rock · pass · race · rule · lash

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rule — a law
  3. march — the month
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. race — a contest
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. wind — moving air
  11. perch — the fish
  12. march — the month
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. rock — a stone
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pass — a permit
  19. race — the arms race
  20. march — music
  21. rock — music
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. race — humankind
  24. pass — to spend time

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