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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  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. cold — the Cold War
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. pitch — completely
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. tube — the underground
  7. kid — child
  8. march — the month
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. kid — to tease
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. cell — in biology
  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