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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. capital — a city
  3. plane — a tool
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bark — to shout
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. capital — money
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. race — a contest
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. stem — to come from
  19. mine — for digging
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. race — humankind
  24. racket — for tennis

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