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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. march — the month
  3. board — to get on
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. file — a line of people
  7. bark — to shout
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. sharp — clever
  11. march — music
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. staff — employees
  16. march — the month
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. staff — employees
  19. staff — a stick
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bark — of a tree

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