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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. face — part of the head
  5. face — to confront
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. race — the arms race
  9. swing — to play on
  10. craft — a skill
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. rush — hurry
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. race — humankind
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. bark — to shout
  18. craft — boats
  19. band — a music group
  20. swing — music
  21. face — to point toward
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. swing — in golf
  24. band — a ring

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