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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: wind · shower · sharp · pass · bark · mark · foot · race

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. race — the arms race
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. race — humankind
  5. foot — a measure
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. race — a contest
  8. shower — rain
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. sharp — clever
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. mark — a trace
  15. pass — a permit
  16. mark — a grade
  17. wind — moving air
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. bark — to shout
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. shower — to wash
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. sharp — with an edge

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