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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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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: season · stick · bark · chip · chest · bat · pass · rule

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. bark — to shout
  5. rule — a law
  6. pass — a permit
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. rule — government
  9. season — in sport
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. chest — of your body
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. bat — the animal
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. chip — for betting
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. chip — to eat
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. season — of the year

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