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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. row — to paddle
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. race — a contest
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. sharp — clever
  15. bark — to shout
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — humankind
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. row — a line
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. sharp — exactly

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