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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 120 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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. shower — to wash
  3. tube — a container
  4. lie — to recline
  5. race — a contest
  6. spring — the season
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — to shout
  9. spring — a coil
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. shower — rain
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. pop — music
  16. race — humankind
  17. pop — soda
  18. spring — of water
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. pop — to visit
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. race — the arms race

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