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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: date · march · saw · rush · bark · cap · fall · drill

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. march — the month
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. saw — the tool
  5. fall — the season
  6. cap — of ice
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. cap — a hat
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. drill — army training
  12. fall — to drop
  13. march — music
  14. drill — the tool
  15. drill — a practice
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. march — the month
  18. fall — to drop
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. date — the fruit
  21. cap — a lid
  22. saw — the tool
  23. bark — to shout
  24. rush — hurry

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