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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: nail · pitcher · march · last · rock · cell · court · land

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. march — the month
  3. rock — a stone
  4. court — of a king
  5. march — music
  6. last — final
  7. cell — in biology
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. last — to go on
  10. land — to come down
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rock — music
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. cell — a phone
  16. court — for sport
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. court — of law
  22. march — the month
  23. last — finally
  24. land — ground

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