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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. drill — a practice
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. drill — the tool
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. march — music
  9. prune — to trim
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. march — the month
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. wind — moving air
  14. drill — army training
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sports field

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