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

Word bank: race · staff · racket · bark · chest · stick · cold · ruler

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. staff — employees
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. cold — an illness
  7. race — a contest
  8. staff — employees
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. race — the arms race
  16. staff — a stick
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. chest — of your body
  20. cold — not warm
  21. chest — a box
  22. race — humankind
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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