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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. face — to confront
  3. race — humankind
  4. tear — from crying
  5. race — a contest
  6. press — a publisher
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. land — to come down
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bulb — for light
  12. tear — to rip
  13. face — part of the head
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. press — to push
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. land — ground
  20. face — to point toward
  21. wake — a trail
  22. tear — from crying
  23. land — a country
  24. press — newspapers

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