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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: plane · bark · race · cap · trunk · bat · temple · stick

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. bat — the animal
  3. cap — a hat
  4. bark — to shout
  5. cap — of ice
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. cap — a lid
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. race — a contest
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. plane — a tool
  24. race — humankind

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