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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. race — humankind
  3. board — a committee
  4. wind — moving air
  5. tear — to rip
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. wind — moving air
  8. race — a contest
  9. tear — from crying
  10. wound — an injury
  11. charge — a price
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. race — the arms race
  14. charge — electricity
  15. board — to get on
  16. bark — to shout
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. dip — to sink
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. charge — in control

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