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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. race — humankind
  3. stand — to bear
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. row — a line
  7. firm — decided
  8. squash — to crush
  9. race — the arms race
  10. mate — a partner
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bat — the animal
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. race — a contest
  16. squash — the sport
  17. firm — a company
  18. row — to paddle
  19. mate — a friend
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. mate — to breed
  24. row — a quarrel

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