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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: bark · foot · cell · race · straw · sharp · rest · drill

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. drill — the tool
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. sharp — clever
  9. race — humankind
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. race — the arms race
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. rest — what's left
  15. race — a contest
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bark — to shout
  18. rest — a break
  19. rest — what's left
  20. cell — a phone
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. drill — army training
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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