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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. tube — a container
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. game — wild animals
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. race — a contest
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. tube — the underground
  14. chair — a leader
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. race — humankind
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bark — to shout
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. game — a match
  24. pitcher — a jug

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