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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: last · craft · drill · march · spell · deal

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. drill — a practice
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. craft — a skill
  5. last — to go on
  6. march — music
  7. drill — the tool
  8. last — finally
  9. spell — a short time
  10. last — final
  11. drill — army training
  12. craft — boats
  13. spell — letters
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. march — the month
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. deal — to handle
  18. spell — magic

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