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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: wind · face · pop · race · lash · mark · saw · bark

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. pop — to visit
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. face — to point toward
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bark — to shout
  8. mark — a trace
  9. race — humankind
  10. face — to confront
  11. saw — the tool
  12. race — a contest
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. face — part of the head
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. pop — soda
  19. mark — a grade
  20. race — the arms race
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. wind — moving air
  24. lash — to lash out

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