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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: chest · ground · board · fall · wound · bark · craft · drill

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  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. chest — a box
  2. drill — army training
  3. ground — crushed
  4. bark — to shout
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wound — an injury
  7. drill — the tool
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — the earth
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. fall — the season
  12. fall — to drop
  13. board — a committee
  14. wound — an injury
  15. chest — of your body
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. craft — a skill
  20. drill — a practice
  21. craft — boats
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  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