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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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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: wind · racket · march · nail · wake · season · pit · kid

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. season — of the year
  3. wind — moving air
  4. march — the month
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. pit — in a race
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. pit — a hole
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. kid — child
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. march — music
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. march — the month
  17. wake — a trail
  18. season — in sport
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. kid — to tease
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. wind — moving air

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