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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: board · bark · clip · file · racket · march · mug · drill

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. clip — a video
  3. file — a document
  4. clip — for paper
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. drill — the tool
  7. bark — to shout
  8. file — a tool
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. file — a line of people
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — a practice
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. march — the month
  15. mug — to rob
  16. board — a committee
  17. mug — a cup
  18. march — music
  19. mug — a face
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. board — to get on

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