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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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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: ground · scale · bowl · leaves · shower · bark · rash · race

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. rash — a series
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bark — to shout
  5. race — humankind
  6. ground — a position
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. shower — to wash
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. scale — size or range
  14. rash — hasty
  15. ground — crushed
  16. shower — rain
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. race — a contest
  23. scale — in music
  24. ground — the earth

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