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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.

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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: pit · march · racket · cabinet · wound · face · row · rest

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. march — music
  4. rest — what's left
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. pit — in a race
  8. face — to point toward
  9. row — to paddle
  10. wound — an injury
  11. face — part of the head
  12. march — the month
  13. rest — what's left
  14. row — a line
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. wound — an injury
  17. march — the month
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. rest — a break
  21. pit — a hole
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. face — to confront
  24. racket — for tennis

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