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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. fall — the season
  5. field — farmland
  6. bark — to shout
  7. field — for sport
  8. mark — a trace
  9. field — a subject
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. fall — to drop
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. race — a contest
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. fall — to drop
  18. race — humankind
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. race — the arms race
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. mouse — the animal

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