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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. race — humankind
  3. current — of water
  4. wind — moving air
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. current — electric
  8. race — the arms race
  9. bark — to shout
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. current — happening now
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. sharp — clever
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. ground — a position
  21. race — a contest
  22. wind — moving air
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. ground — the earth

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