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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 · wake · rash · field · pitcher · lean · wind · cap

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. wind — moving air
  3. lean — thin
  4. march — the month
  5. rash — hasty
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. wind — moving air
  11. field — for sport
  12. lean — to bend
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cap — a hat
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — a subject
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. cap — of ice
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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