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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: race · fan · swing · prune · bay · bark · cap · content

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — the arms race
  5. cap — a lid
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. cap — a hat
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bark — to shout
  12. content — the amount
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. prune — to trim
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. race — a contest
  19. content — happy
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. prune — to trim

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