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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: charge · swing · perch · bat · lash · rush · wave · race

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. charge — in control
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. charge — a price
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. charge — electricity
  10. swing — to play on
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. race — humankind
  13. swing — music
  14. bat — the animal
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. perch — the fish
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. swing — in golf
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — a contest

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