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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 116 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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. field — for sport
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. wound — an injury
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. field — a subject
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. snap — to click
  10. wound — an injury
  11. march — the month
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. field — farmland
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. march — the month
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. pitch — completely
  24. racket — a loud noise

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