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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 116 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: file · ground · wave · face · cell · club · bark · march

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. cell — a phone
  3. march — the month
  4. bark — to shout
  5. face — to point toward
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. club — for golf
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. face — to confront
  10. file — a document
  11. file — a line of people
  12. ground — the earth
  13. cell — in biology
  14. march — music
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. march — the month
  17. club — for dancing
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. file — a tool
  20. face — part of the head
  21. ground — crushed
  22. ground — a position
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. club — a group

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