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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: last · spring · rule · drill · jam · wound · stick · bark

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. drill — army training
  3. spring — the season
  4. wound — an injury
  5. drill — a practice
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. rule — government
  8. last — finally
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. bark — to shout
  11. last — final
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. drill — the tool
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rule — a law
  16. spring — a coil
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. last — to go on
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. jam — a tight spot

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