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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 120 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: club · march · bark · cabinet · kick · last · bear · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. club — a group
  4. bear — the animal
  5. club — for golf
  6. march — the month
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — final
  9. kick — in football
  10. capital — a city
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bear — the animal
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. club — for dancing
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. last — finally
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bark — to shout

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