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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: present · fall · shower · racket · march · mate · bark · lean

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. bark — to shout
  3. march — the month
  4. mate — a partner
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. fall — the season
  8. lean — to bend
  9. fall — to drop
  10. march — music
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. present — there
  13. shower — rain
  14. lean — thin
  15. fall — to drop
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. present — the time now
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. shower — to wash
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. mate — to breed
  23. mate — a friend
  24. march — the month

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