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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 124 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 can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. rule — government
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. bark — to shout
  6. spell — letters
  7. swing — to play on
  8. swing — in golf
  9. bass — the fish
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. swing — music
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — a contest
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. race — humankind
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. bass — low music
  18. rule — a law
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — magic
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. bass — the instrument

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