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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: foot · march · bat · arm · pitch · drill · bass · wax

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bat — the animal
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. drill — a practice
  9. bass — the fish
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. drill — army training
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. bass — low music
  15. march — music
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. foot — a measure
  19. wax — to grow
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. march — the month
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. foot — the bottom

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