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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: arm · press · cell · last · bark · race · chip · plane

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. press — to push
  3. chip — to eat
  4. race — humankind
  5. last — finally
  6. bark — to shout
  7. cell — a phone
  8. press — a publisher
  9. cell — in biology
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. plane — a tool
  12. chip — for betting
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. last — to go on
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. last — final
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. press — newspapers
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. race — a contest

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