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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a line
  3. capital — money
  4. race — a contest
  5. race — the arms race
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. face — part of the head
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. pass — a permit
  11. race — humankind
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. face — to confront
  14. face — to point toward
  15. capital — a city
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. wound — an injury
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. wound — an injury
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. capital — a big letter

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