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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — in cards
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. race — a contest
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. lean — to bend
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. hand — help
  15. race — the arms race
  16. bark — to shout
  17. net — for catching
  18. bark — of a tree

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