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

Word bank: pound · tear · march · kick · pitcher · mate

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. march — the month
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. mate — a partner
  6. march — music
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. march — the month
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. mate — to breed
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. mate — a friend
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. tear — from crying
  18. kick — in football

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