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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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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 · shower · mine · racket · perch · bark · net · rest

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. race — humankind
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. net — after costs
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. shower — to wash
  11. rest — a break
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. rest — what's left
  16. race — a contest
  17. perch — the fish
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. mine — for digging
  20. shower — rain
  21. net — for catching
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bark — to shout
  24. race — the arms race

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