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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: arm · bark · season · bat · row · object · march · snap

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — to shout
  4. object — to protest
  5. snap — to click
  6. object — an aim
  7. season — of the year
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. object — a thing
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. march — music
  15. row — to paddle
  16. march — the month
  17. bat — the animal
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. season — in sport
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. row — a line
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  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