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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: kick · mouse · vault · field · band · march · calf · wound

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. wound — an injury
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. band — a music group
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. march — the month
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. field — farmland
  11. kick — in football
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. field — a subject
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. band — a ring
  16. wound — an injury
  17. vault — a safe
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. field — for sport
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. march — the month
  24. band — a rubber band

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