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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bound — obliged
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. capital — a city
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. race — the arms race
  12. bound — tied together
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. chair — a leader
  15. capital — money
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. race — a contest
  18. bound — certain

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