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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: kick · field · rock · band · cue · date · game · march

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. game — wild animals
  3. march — music
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. band — a music group
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. march — the month
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. rock — music
  13. band — a ring
  14. cue — for pool
  15. field — for sport
  16. rock — a stone
  17. march — the month
  18. field — a subject
  19. cue — a hint
  20. field — farmland
  21. game — a match
  22. cue — a signal
  23. date — the fruit
  24. kick — in football

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