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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. race — the arms race
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to bend
  9. race — a contest
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. race — humankind
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. squash — to crush
  14. squash — the sport
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. current — happening now
  17. current — of water
  18. march — the month
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. wind — moving air
  22. march — the month
  23. current — electric
  24. march — music

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