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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: pitcher · band · craft · bound · mate · march · wake · kid

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  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. band — a ring
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. bound — obliged
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. craft — boats
  6. kid — to tease
  7. march — music
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. kid — child
  10. mate — a friend
  11. craft — a skill
  12. mate — a partner
  13. march — the month
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. mate — to breed
  17. bound — certain
  18. wake — a trail
  19. band — a music group
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. bound — tied together
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. pitcher — a jug
  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