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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
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: bark · rest · rash · tube · arm · saw · face · march

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. face — to confront
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. bark — to shout
  8. tube — a container
  9. saw — the tool
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. rest — a break
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. march — the month
  17. rash — hasty
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. face — to point toward
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rash — a series
  23. face — part of the head
  24. saw — the tool

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