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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: mate · bay · craft · pitch · field · march · wind · land

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. mate — a friend
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. craft — boats
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. land — to come down
  8. mate — a partner
  9. craft — a skill
  10. field — for sport
  11. wind — moving air
  12. march — the month
  13. mate — to breed
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. march — music
  20. land — ground
  21. land — a country
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. wind — moving air
  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