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

Word bank: degree · mate · race · wind · bark · fork

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — a contest
  3. fork — in a road
  4. degree — temperature
  5. race — the arms race
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. mate — to breed
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. mate — a partner
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. degree — from a university
  13. mate — a friend
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bark — to shout
  16. degree — an amount
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bark — a dog's sound

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