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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: pitcher · pitch · wound · rock · mark · march · wind · chest

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. pitch — completely
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mark — a grade
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. march — the month
  8. wound — an injury
  9. march — the month
  10. mark — a trace
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. rock — a stone
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. chest — of your body
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. rock — music
  23. wind — moving air
  24. chest — a box

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