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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 116 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: track · drill · present · hand · march · court · bass · mine

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. drill — the tool
  3. track — a path
  4. drill — a practice
  5. march — music
  6. present — a gift
  7. present — the time now
  8. bass — low music
  9. track — a song
  10. drill — army training
  11. court — of law
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — help
  14. bass — the fish
  15. court — for sport
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. present — there
  19. march — the month
  20. court — of a king
  21. track — to keep track
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. march — the month
  24. bass — the instrument

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