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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: ground · march · lash · patient · key · bark · lean · cold

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  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. cold — the Cold War
  2. ground — the earth
  3. march — music
  4. ground — crushed
  5. cold — not warm
  6. ground — a position
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. key — in music
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. key — for a lock
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. lean — to bend
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. cold — an illness
  19. key — the most important part
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. lean — thin
  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