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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.

Make a worksheet

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: chair · bark · shower · lash · march · lean · wound · track

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. march — the month
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. shower — rain
  5. bark — to shout
  6. march — music
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. lean — to bend
  9. chair — a leader
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. track — a song
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. lean — thin
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. wound — an injury
  17. track — to keep track
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. track — a path
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. wound — an injury
  22. march — the month
  23. shower — to wash
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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