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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: mark · stock · drill · bark · stand · capital · lash · can

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. stock — goods
  3. can — a tin
  4. mark — a trace
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. stock — shares
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. drill — the tool
  11. bark — to shout
  12. can — to be able to
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. capital — money
  16. drill — army training
  17. mark — a grade
  18. stand — to bear
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. drill — a practice
  24. can — a tin

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