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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. suit — in cards
  3. pit — in a race
  4. race — humankind
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. race — a contest
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. squash — the sport
  10. game — wild animals
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. court — of law
  13. game — a match
  14. suit — to fit
  15. pit — a hole
  16. squash — to crush
  17. scale — size or range
  18. scale — in music
  19. bark — to shout
  20. suit — clothes
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of a king
  24. race — the arms race

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