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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. ball — a dance
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. season — of the year
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. pitch — completely
  8. bat — the animal
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. ball — a great time
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. hand — in cards
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. season — in sport
  20. hand — help
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. march — the month
  23. drill — a practice
  24. drill — army training

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