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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. race — a contest
  3. last — finally
  4. last — to go on
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. race — the arms race
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. last — final
  11. bark — to shout
  12. file — a document
  13. file — a line of people
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. file — a tool
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. race — humankind
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. content — the amount
  24. content — happy

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