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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: mouse · lean · tube · rule · march · bark · branch · stand

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. lean — thin
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. tube — a container
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. bark — to shout
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. branch — a division
  12. tube — the underground
  13. march — the month
  14. rule — government
  15. lean — to bend
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. rule — a law
  18. march — music
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. march — the month
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. stand — to bear

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