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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 116 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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. race — a contest
  3. track — a song
  4. stand — to bear
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. drill — a practice
  7. bark — to shout
  8. net — after costs
  9. net — in sport
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. net — for catching
  12. drill — the tool
  13. race — humankind
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. last — final
  16. drill — army training
  17. track — a path
  18. track — to keep track
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. last — finally
  23. last — to go on
  24. fork — in a road

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