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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: board · fork · spell · prune · present · current · bark · march

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. march — music
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. present — there
  5. current — happening now
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. prune — to trim
  9. march — the month
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. march — the month
  12. board — to get on
  13. present — the time now
  14. spell — letters
  15. prune — to trim
  16. spell — a short time
  17. current — electric
  18. current — of water
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. present — a gift
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. fork — in a road
  24. spell — magic

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