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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 116 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. cap — of ice
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bark — to shout
  5. cap — a lid
  6. track — to keep track
  7. race — the arms race
  8. tear — from crying
  9. cap — a hat
  10. spell — letters
  11. tear — to rip
  12. rock — a stone
  13. cue — for pool
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. race — a contest
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. cue — a hint
  19. rock — music
  20. race — humankind
  21. cue — a signal
  22. spell — a short time
  23. track — a path
  24. track — a song

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