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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. kid — to tease
  4. race — the arms race
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. craft — boats
  8. race — a contest
  9. file — a tool
  10. kid — child
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. craft — a skill
  13. current — of water
  14. race — humankind
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. branch — a division
  18. file — a line of people
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. current — electric
  21. file — a document
  22. current — happening now
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stem — to come from

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