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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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Word bank
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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: straw · lash · staff · race · arm · tube · prune · bark

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. prune — to trim
  5. race — humankind
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. tube — the underground
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. prune — to trim
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. staff — employees
  15. race — a contest
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. tube — a container
  18. staff — a stick
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. staff — employees
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. prune — the fruit

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