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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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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: march · field · ruler · racket · wound · saw · arm · rest

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. field — farmland
  3. march — the month
  4. field — for sport
  5. wound — an injury
  6. saw — the tool
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. wound — an injury
  9. rest — what's left
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. rest — what's left
  13. saw — the tool
  14. rest — a break
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. field — a subject
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. ruler — for measuring

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