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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: hand · march · leaves · bulb · bark · craft · rock · court

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. march — music
  3. bulb — for light
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. march — the month
  7. rock — a stone
  8. craft — boats
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. craft — a skill
  12. rock — music
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. court — for sport
  15. bark — to shout
  16. hand — help
  17. march — the month
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. court — of a king
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. court — of law
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. bulb — for light

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