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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: wound · object · kid · march · bark · season · cap · nail

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. cap — of ice
  8. object — to protest
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. object — a thing
  11. wound — an injury
  12. cap — a lid
  13. cap — a hat
  14. kid — to tease
  15. march — the month
  16. bark — to shout
  17. season — of the year
  18. kid — child
  19. march — the month
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. object — an aim
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. season — in sport
  24. wound — an injury

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