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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.

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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: swing · sharp · march · can · bark · current · land · row

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. march — the month
  3. swing — in golf
  4. march — the month
  5. current — happening now
  6. can — a tin
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. bark — to shout
  9. can — to be able to
  10. march — music
  11. land — to come down
  12. row — to paddle
  13. sharp — clever
  14. land — a country
  15. swing — music
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. current — of water
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. row — a line
  20. current — electric
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. swing — to play on
  23. can — a tin
  24. land — ground

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