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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 120 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: kid · board · bark · bay · mouse · cell · race · rule

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. kid — child
  4. rule — a law
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. race — the arms race
  8. board — a committee
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. rule — government
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — humankind
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. cell — a phone
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. kid — to tease
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. board — to get on
  24. cell — in biology

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