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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: craft · firm · drill · bark · ground · arm · date · rest

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. craft — a skill
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. firm — a company
  5. bark — to shout
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. rest — a break
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — the fruit
  10. craft — boats
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. ground — crushed
  13. drill — a practice
  14. ground — the earth
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. firm — decided
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. rest — what's left
  21. ground — a position
  22. rest — what's left
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — the tool

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