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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
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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: rest · band · spell · mine · last · calf · pit · march

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. last — to go on
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. pit — a hole
  6. mine — for digging
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a music group
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. band — a ring
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. spell — letters
  14. rest — what's left
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. spell — a short time
  17. last — finally
  18. spell — magic
  19. pit — in a race
  20. rest — what's left
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. last — final
  23. march — music
  24. rest — a break

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