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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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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: leaves · squash · last · net · bat · stand · march · hand

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. march — the month
  3. stand — to bear
  4. net — in sport
  5. march — music
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — finally
  15. bat — the animal
  16. march — the month
  17. hand — help
  18. squash — the sport
  19. squash — to crush
  20. net — for catching
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. net — after costs
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. last — final

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