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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: mark · pop · drill · rush · bark · cell · cold · plane

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. pop — soda
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. cold — an illness
  6. pop — to visit
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. drill — a practice
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. mark — a trace
  12. plane — a tool
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. drill — the tool
  16. pop — music
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bark — to shout
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. cell — in biology
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. rush — hurry
  24. cell — a phone

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