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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 120 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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. race — humankind
  4. fine — high quality
  5. wake — a trail
  6. bark — to shout
  7. fine — all right
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. kid — to tease
  13. court — for sport
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. court — of law
  17. race — the arms race
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — child
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. plane — a tool
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. court — of a king
  24. plane — in geometry

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