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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: pound · mark · march · bat · staff · bay · tear · kid

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. staff — employees
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. march — the month
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bat — the animal
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. pound — a weight
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. kid — to tease
  18. mark — a grade
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — a stick
  21. tear — from crying
  22. mark — a trace
  23. kid — child
  24. pound — to hit hard

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