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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
468
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: race · wound · rash · mine · bark · nail · band · mouse

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. bark — to shout
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. race — a contest
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. band — a ring
  11. wound — an injury
  12. race — humankind
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. race — the arms race
  17. mine — for digging
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. rash — a series
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. band — a music group

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