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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 · bark · stand · mark · last · scale · mate · clip

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — a friend
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. last — finally
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. bark — to shout
  8. mark — a grade
  9. last — to go on
  10. clip — for paper
  11. scale — size or range
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. lean — thin
  14. clip — to cut
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. clip — a video
  17. mate — to breed
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. last — final
  20. scale — in music
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. lean — to bend
  24. mark — a trace

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