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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: rest · march · bat · cabinet · stand · branch · snap · bark

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. march — the month
  4. bark — to shout
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — a break
  7. march — the month
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. march — music
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. snap — to click
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. bat — the animal

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