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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: drill · chest · toast · squash · wind · land · leaves · bark

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. drill — a practice
  3. chest — of your body
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. squash — to crush
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. wind — moving air
  10. land — to come down
  11. wind — moving air
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. land — ground
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. squash — the sport
  16. land — a country
  17. toast — bread
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. chest — a box
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. chest — of your body
  22. drill — the tool
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. drill — army training

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