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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 116 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: board · tear · race · club · squash · bark

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. board — a committee
  3. club — for dancing
  4. club — for golf
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — to crush
  7. race — a contest
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. race — the arms race
  11. club — a group
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bark — to shout
  14. tear — from crying
  15. board — to get on
  16. race — humankind
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. tear — from crying

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