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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.

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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: firm · plane · bark · mark · rash · tear · pass · cold

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — hasty
  3. cold — not warm
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bark — to shout
  8. firm — a company
  9. pass — a permit
  10. firm — steady
  11. tear — to rip
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. tear — from crying
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mark — a grade
  17. firm — decided
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. plane — a tool
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. cold — an illness

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