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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. race — the arms race
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. race — a contest
  5. clip — a video
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. race — humankind
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. chair — a leader
  12. present — there
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. clip — to cut
  15. present — a gift
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. present — the time now
  18. clip — for paper
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. prune — to trim
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. bark — to shout
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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