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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: toast · mine · pit · leaves · calf · march · saw · field

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. mine — for digging
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. pit — a hole
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. toast — bread
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. march — the month
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. field — for sport
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. field — a subject
  16. pit — in a race
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. field — farmland
  20. saw — the tool
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. calf — a young animal

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