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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — the arms race
  4. race — humankind
  5. current — electric
  6. march — the month
  7. dip — to sink
  8. deal — to handle
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bark — to shout
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. current — of water
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. march — music
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. plane — a tool
  24. current — happening now

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