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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: stock · shower · kick · mouse · plane · rush · wind · rash

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. rash — a series
  3. plane — a tool
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. rash — hasty
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. stock — goods
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. rush — hurry
  17. shower — rain
  18. kick — in football
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. stock — shares
  22. wind — moving air
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. shower — to wash

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