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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: race · scale · dip · can · chest · fan · wake · shower

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. race — the arms race
  3. scale — in music
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. race — humankind
  7. wake — a trail
  8. chest — of your body
  9. can — to be able to
  10. chest — a box
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. can — a tin
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — to wash
  19. can — a tin
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. dip — to sink
  22. scale — size or range
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. fan — a supporter

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