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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: swing · file · track · race · rash · lash · fan · pop

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. race — a contest
  3. swing — music
  4. file — a tool
  5. rash — a series
  6. track — a song
  7. pop — to visit
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. track — to keep track
  10. swing — in golf
  11. race — the arms race
  12. pop — soda
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. swing — to play on
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. file — a document
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. race — humankind
  21. rash — hasty
  22. pop — music
  23. file — a line of people
  24. track — a path

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