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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.

Make a worksheet

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: game · kid · rash · march · cap · hand · mouse · pitch

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. cap — a hat
  3. rash — hasty
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. hand — help
  6. march — the month
  7. pitch — completely
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. game — wild animals
  12. rash — a series
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. cap — a lid
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. cap — of ice
  18. march — music
  19. game — a match
  20. kid — to tease
  21. hand — in cards
  22. kid — child
  23. march — the month
  24. mouse — the animal

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