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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: cap · hide · pitch · fall · drill · march · trunk · bark

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pitch — completely
  3. cap — a lid
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. drill — a practice
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. bark — to shout
  9. cap — of ice
  10. fall — to drop
  11. march — music
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. march — the month
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. fall — the season
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. fall — to drop
  19. drill — army training
  20. drill — the tool
  21. cap — a hat
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. hide — to keep secret

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