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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. row — a line
  3. pop — soda
  4. ground — the earth
  5. mate — a friend
  6. race — a contest
  7. race — humankind
  8. suit — to fit
  9. ground — crushed
  10. ground — a position
  11. pop — music
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. mate — a partner
  14. bark — to shout
  15. suit — clothes
  16. tube — the underground
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. pop — to visit
  19. tube — a container
  20. row — to paddle
  21. suit — in cards
  22. race — the arms race
  23. mate — to breed
  24. tube — in a tire

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