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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. race — the arms race
  3. pop — to visit
  4. race — a contest
  5. mug — a cup
  6. race — humankind
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mug — to rob
  13. band — a music group
  14. bark — to shout
  15. band — a ring
  16. pop — music
  17. root — of a plant
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mug — a face
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. pass — a permit
  22. root — the cause
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. pop — soda

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