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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 120 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: object · march · pitcher · ground · kid · fall · staff · mark

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. staff — a stick
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — to drop
  6. object — to protest
  7. mark — a grade
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. march — the month
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. march — the month
  12. mark — a trace
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. object — a thing
  15. staff — employees
  16. march — music
  17. ground — the earth
  18. object — an aim
  19. kid — child
  20. ground — crushed
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. ground — a position
  23. staff — employees
  24. fall — the season

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