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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. lean — thin
  4. drill — a practice
  5. mark — a trace
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. root — of a word
  8. drill — the tool
  9. root — the cause
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. march — the month
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. march — music
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. capital — a city
  17. root — of a plant
  18. drill — army training
  19. bark — to shout
  20. capital — money
  21. lean — to bend
  22. march — the month
  23. mark — a grade
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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