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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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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: deal · race · file · march · bark · rest · roll · lean

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. roll — a cake
  5. march — the month
  6. lean — thin
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — a contest
  9. file — a document
  10. march — music
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. rest — a break
  13. lean — to bend
  14. file — a tool
  15. bark — to shout
  16. march — the month
  17. rest — what's left
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. race — humankind
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. roll — a list
  22. deal — to handle
  23. rest — what's left
  24. deal — an agreement

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