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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: bark · racket · date · chest · rule · march · drill · tube

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. drill — army training
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. rule — a law
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. march — the month
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. drill — the tool
  16. rule — government
  17. drill — a practice
  18. chest — a box
  19. tube — the underground
  20. chest — of your body
  21. march — music
  22. date — the fruit
  23. tube — a container
  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