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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: nail · rash · race · press · club · plane · cold · wound

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. wound — an injury
  5. cold — not warm
  6. wound — an injury
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. club — for dancing
  9. cold — an illness
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. press — newspapers
  13. race — a contest
  14. rash — a series
  15. rash — hasty
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. race — humankind
  19. club — for golf
  20. race — the arms race
  21. plane — a tool
  22. press — to push
  23. club — a group
  24. press — a publisher

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