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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: nail · wound · arm · race · bore · bark · stand · present

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. bark — to shout
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. bore — to tire
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. present — a gift
  11. race — humankind
  12. wound — an injury
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stand — to bear
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. race — a contest
  18. present — there
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bore — to drill
  22. present — the time now
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. arm — part of the body

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