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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 · fan · shower · lie · rash · dip · wound · nail

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. race — the arms race
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. race — a contest
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. shower — rain
  9. race — humankind
  10. wound — an injury
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. rash — a series
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — to wash
  17. dip — to sink
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. lie — to recline
  23. rash — hasty
  24. wound — an injury

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