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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: rest · perch · roll · race · rule · field · nail · mine

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. race — the arms race
  4. mine — for digging
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. field — farmland
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. roll — a cake
  10. rule — government
  11. rest — a break
  12. field — a subject
  13. field — for sport
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. rest — what's left
  18. perch — the fish
  19. roll — a list
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. race — humankind
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. race — a contest
  24. rule — a law

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