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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 120 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 · spring · march · cell · chest · coach · can · foot

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. chest — of your body
  3. march — the month
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. spring — the season
  9. march — the month
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in biology
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. chest — a box
  14. spring — a coil
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. chest — of your body
  18. spring — of water
  19. can — to be able to
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. bark — to shout
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. march — music

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