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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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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: game · perch · dip · rash · kick · wound · last · race

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. race — a contest
  4. last — final
  5. dip — to sink
  6. last — finally
  7. game — wild animals
  8. rash — hasty
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. wound — an injury
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. last — to go on
  15. race — humankind
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. rash — a series
  19. game — a match
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. perch — the fish
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. kick — in football
  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