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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: march · bulb · fan · bark · file · bear · fine · board

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. march — the month
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. bark — to shout
  5. board — a committee
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bulb — for light
  8. board — to get on
  9. file — a document
  10. fine — all right
  11. bulb — for light
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. file — a line of people
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. file — a tool
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. fine — high quality
  18. march — the month
  19. march — music
  20. bear — the animal
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. fan — a supporter

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