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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. race — the arms race
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bark — to shout
  8. object — to protest
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. cell — in biology
  12. land — a country
  13. land — ground
  14. race — a contest
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. race — humankind
  17. tear — to rip
  18. object — an aim
  19. cell — a phone
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. tear — from crying
  22. object — a thing
  23. land — to come down
  24. straw — a straw man

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