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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.

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: march · mine · foot · cap · squash · wound · bear · bark

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — a lid
  6. squash — to crush
  7. march — the month
  8. squash — the sport
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bark — to shout
  16. cap — of ice
  17. foot — a measure
  18. mine — for digging
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. march — music
  23. wound — an injury
  24. march — the month

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