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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. race — a contest
  5. root — of a word
  6. net — after costs
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. net — for catching
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pass — a permit
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — a video
  17. net — in sport
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. race — the arms race
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. race — humankind
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — the cause
  24. fan — to cool the air

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