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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: shower · fine · mark · march · board · press · kid · bark

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. press — to push
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. fine — all right
  5. shower — to wash
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. mark — a grade
  8. march — the month
  9. bark — to shout
  10. kid — child
  11. press — a publisher
  12. march — music
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. mark — a trace
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. press — newspapers
  17. fine — high quality
  18. march — the month
  19. board — to get on
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. kid — to tease
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. shower — rain
  24. bark — of a tree

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