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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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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: staff · stick · drill · bark · rock · cell · march · bat

  1. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. drill — army training
  4. staff — a stick
  5. rock — music
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. staff — employees
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. bat — the animal
  10. march — the month
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. march — music
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. drill — a practice
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. cell — a phone
  21. march — the month
  22. staff — employees
  23. drill — the tool
  24. bat — for baseball

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