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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. bark — to shout
  5. tube — a container
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. race — the arms race
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. pit — a hole
  11. file — a document
  12. pit — in a race
  13. file — a tool
  14. race — a contest
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. squash — to crush
  19. file — a line of people
  20. race — humankind
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. tube — the underground
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. squash — the sport

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