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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 112 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: kid · spell · race · rash · fine · racket · bore · perch

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. spell — a short time
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — letters
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. rash — hasty
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. fine — high quality
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. fine — all right
  13. race — a contest
  14. bore — to drill
  15. rash — a series
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. bore — to tire
  18. kid — to tease
  19. kid — child
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. perch — the fish
  22. race — the arms race
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. racket — a loud noise

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