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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: lie · bark · track · march · season · wind · fall · tube

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — to recline
  6. march — music
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tube — a container
  9. march — the month
  10. track — to keep track
  11. bark — to shout
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — in sport
  14. fall — to drop
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fall — to drop
  17. march — the month
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. fall — the season
  20. track — a path
  21. track — a song
  22. season — of the year
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bark — of a tree

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