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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 116 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. tube — the underground
  3. bound — obliged
  4. rash — a series
  5. object — an aim
  6. bound — certain
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — to shout
  9. race — humankind
  10. march — the month
  11. race — the arms race
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. tube — a container
  14. bound — tied together
  15. ground — the earth
  16. object — a thing
  17. march — music
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. ground — a position
  20. object — to protest
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. race — a contest
  23. rash — hasty
  24. march — the month

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