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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cabinet · march · present · current · bark · spring · content · racket

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. bark — to shout
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. march — the month
  5. content — happy
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. present — the time now
  8. spring — the season
  9. current — happening now
  10. spring — a coil
  11. march — music
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. present — a gift
  16. march — the month
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. spring — of water
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. current — electric
  23. current — of water
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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