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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: bark · last · cap · season · bulb · trunk · ruler · march

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. season — in sport
  3. march — the month
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. cap — a hat
  6. last — final
  7. last — finally
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. bark — to shout
  11. cap — a lid
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. bulb — for light
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. season — of the year
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. march — music
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. march — the month
  21. bulb — for light
  22. cap — of ice
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. trunk — of a car

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