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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mug · capital · lean · bark · fork · march · tube · court

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. tube — a container
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. court — of law
  7. lean — to bend
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. mug — a face
  10. fork — in a road
  11. capital — money
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. lean — thin
  14. bark — to shout
  15. mug — a cup
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. court — of a king
  18. capital — a city
  19. court — for sport
  20. mug — to rob
  21. march — the month
  22. march — the month
  23. march — music
  24. tube — the underground

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