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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bark — to shout
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. race — the arms race
  5. rule — government
  6. content — happy
  7. ground — a position
  8. ground — the earth
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. race — humankind
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. rule — a law
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. swing — to play on
  17. bore — to drill
  18. swing — music
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. ground — crushed
  21. swing — in golf
  22. race — a contest
  23. sharp — clever
  24. content — the amount

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