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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. ground — the earth
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. face — part of the head
  8. board — a committee
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. bark — to shout
  11. race — a contest
  12. ground — a position
  13. ground — crushed
  14. face — to confront
  15. shower — to wash
  16. face — to point toward
  17. race — the arms race
  18. rash — a series
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. race — humankind
  21. board — to get on
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. rash — hasty
  24. shower — rain

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