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

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. hand — in cards
  3. march — the month
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. perch — the fish
  6. hand — help
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pitch — completely
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. race — humankind
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. race — a contest
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. kick — in football
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. march — the month

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