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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. race — a contest
  4. spell — magic
  5. race — humankind
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stem — to come from
  8. court — of law
  9. mate — a friend
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. court — for sport
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. spell — letters
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. court — of a king
  17. bark — to shout
  18. mate — to breed
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. spell — a short time
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — to wash
  23. mate — a partner
  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