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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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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: march · land · sharp · swing · bank · pound · mark · pitcher

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. swing — music
  3. land — to come down
  4. bank — of a river
  5. mark — a trace
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. pound — a weight
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. land — ground
  11. bank — for money
  12. sharp — clever
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. swing — to play on
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. mark — a grade
  19. march — the month
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. swing — in golf
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. bank — for money
  24. pitcher — a jug

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