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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.

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: last · stand · chest · march · track · drill · straw · leaves

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. march — the month
  3. chest — of your body
  4. march — music
  5. last — final
  6. drill — a practice
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. track — to keep track
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. drill — army training
  12. last — finally
  13. stand — to bear
  14. track — a path
  15. last — to go on
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. track — a song
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. march — the month
  22. chest — a box
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. drill — the tool

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