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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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Word bank
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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: lean · drill · field · bark · spring · march · cue · bear

  1. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. march — music
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — thin
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. spring — the season
  11. drill — army training
  12. cue — a signal
  13. drill — the tool
  14. march — the month
  15. bark — to shout
  16. drill — a practice
  17. field — farmland
  18. march — the month
  19. field — a subject
  20. cue — a hint
  21. bear — the animal
  22. spring — a coil
  23. field — for sport
  24. spring — of water

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