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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. race — humankind
  5. bark — to shout
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. fall — the season
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. spell — magic
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. race — a contest
  18. spell — a short time
  19. fall — to drop
  20. degree — from a university
  21. fall — to drop
  22. spell — letters
  23. degree — temperature
  24. degree — an amount

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