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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. snap — to click
  3. rest — what's left
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. race — a contest
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. race — humankind
  9. last — finally
  10. saw — the tool
  11. rest — a break
  12. saw — the tool
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. last — final
  16. last — to go on
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bark — to shout
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. race — the arms race
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. rest — what's left
  24. patient — a sick person

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