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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: court · game · spell · pitcher · march · chip · toast · drill

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. spell — magic
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. march — music
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. court — for sport
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. drill — a practice
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. chip — for betting
  13. chip — to eat
  14. spell — a short time
  15. game — wild animals
  16. drill — army training
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. game — a match
  19. spell — letters
  20. drill — the tool
  21. court — of law
  22. march — the month
  23. court — of a king
  24. toast — bread

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