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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. last — to go on
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. drill — army training
  7. land — ground
  8. drill — the tool
  9. tube — a container
  10. land — to come down
  11. last — final
  12. key — in music
  13. key — for a lock
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. hand — in cards
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. last — finally
  19. tube — the underground
  20. hand — help
  21. land — a country
  22. drill — a practice
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. key — the most important part

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