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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. wind — moving air
  5. track — to keep track
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. ball — a dance
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. saw — the tool
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. march — the month
  12. squash — to crush
  13. squash — the sport
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. track — a path
  16. pitch — completely
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. wind — moving air
  19. ball — a great time
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. track — a song
  22. saw — the tool
  23. march — music
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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