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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.

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: pitcher · spell · march · race · rash · kick · scale · kid

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. scale — in music
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. rash — a series
  5. kid — child
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. spell — letters
  8. scale — size or range
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. rash — hasty
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. spell — a short time
  13. race — a contest
  14. spell — magic
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. race — humankind
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. kick — in football
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. race — the arms race
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. scale — for weighing

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