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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 120 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: mug · pitch · mine · march · band · foot · stock · rest

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. stock — shares
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. mug — a cup
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. stock — goods
  8. rest — what's left
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a face
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. pitch — completely
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. foot — a measure
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. rest — a break
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. band — a music group
  22. rest — what's left
  23. march — the month
  24. pitch — a sports field

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