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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.

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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: hand · racket · bear · cold · march · fork · pound · mouse

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. bear — the animal
  3. march — the month
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. march — the month
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cold — an illness
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. pound — a weight
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. hand — help
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. cold — not warm

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