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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 124 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pound · last · coach · toast · march · kick

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. march — the month
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. march — music
  8. pound — a weight
  9. last — finally
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. kick — in football
  13. last — final
  14. march — the month
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. last — to go on
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. toast — a drink to someone

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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