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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: pound · bark · arm · race · leaves · mine · net · wind

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — the arms race
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mine — for digging
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. net — after costs
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. net — for catching
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. net — in sport
  18. wind — moving air
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. race — a contest
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bark — to shout

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