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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. chair — a leader
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. capital — a city
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. rock — a stone
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. race — a contest
  11. scale — size or range
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. scale — in music
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bark — to shout
  17. rock — music
  18. race — humankind
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. capital — money
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. snap — to click
  24. hide — animal skin

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