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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 · fall · perch · band · fork · rash · nail · fan

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  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. fan — a supporter
  2. perch — the fish
  3. fall — the season
  4. rash — hasty
  5. race — the arms race
  6. race — humankind
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a ring
  9. fall — to drop
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. fork — in a road
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. rash — a series
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. race — a contest
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. fork — to eat with
  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