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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: racket · snap · race · cell · band · rule

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. band — a music group
  3. race — a contest
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. cell — a phone
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. rule — government
  8. race — humankind
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. race — the arms race
  11. cell — in biology
  12. rule — a law
  13. snap — to click
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. band — a ring

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