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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 · lie · spell · pitch · fine · trunk · hand · pound

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. march — music
  3. hand — in cards
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. lie — to recline
  7. fine — all right
  8. fine — high quality
  9. march — the month
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. spell — magic
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. hand — help
  15. pitch — completely
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. spell — a short time
  24. march — the month

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