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

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. row — to paddle
  4. race — the arms race
  5. race — a contest
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bark — to shout
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. toast — bread
  10. mine — for digging
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. date — the fruit
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. row — a line
  15. race — humankind
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. toast — the most admired

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