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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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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: wind · chair · cell · drill · roll · track

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. drill — army training
  3. track — a song
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — a leader
  6. roll — a list
  7. track — to keep track
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. wind — moving air
  11. cell — a phone
  12. drill — the tool
  13. cell — in biology
  14. track — a path
  15. drill — a practice
  16. roll — a cake
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. cell — in a prison

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