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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: march · rule · wake · bark · mine · spring · cabinet · date

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — the month
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. date — the fruit
  12. spring — of water
  13. wake — a trail
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. rule — a law
  19. spring — the season
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bark — to shout
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. march — music
  24. rule — government

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