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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: snap · shower · nail · court · march · bark · lie · staff

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. shower — to wash
  3. court — for sport
  4. march — music
  5. snap — to click
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — a stick
  10. lie — to recline
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. court — of a king
  13. staff — employees
  14. march — the month
  15. bark — to shout
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. march — the month
  20. shower — rain
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. court — of law
  24. nail — for a hammer

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