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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. drill — army training
  3. hand — in cards
  4. tube — the underground
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. march — the month
  7. march — the month
  8. drill — a practice
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. pass — a permit
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. drill — the tool
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. march — music
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. bark — to shout
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. hand — help

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