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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. file — a document
  5. race — humankind
  6. rest — what's left
  7. land — ground
  8. march — the month
  9. rest — a break
  10. march — the month
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. file — a line of people
  13. board — a committee
  14. march — music
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. race — a contest
  17. bark — to shout
  18. file — a tool
  19. rest — what's left
  20. board — to get on
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — a country

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