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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bark — to shout
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bank — for money
  6. kid — child
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bank — of a river
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — humankind
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. key — for a lock
  16. key — in music
  17. kid — to tease
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bank — for money
  21. rash — a series
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. race — the arms race
  24. bark — of a tree

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