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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 116 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: kick · net · racket · kid · spell · chair · fall · drill

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. spell — letters
  3. fall — to drop
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. kick — in football
  6. fall — the season
  7. net — after costs
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. drill — army training
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. kid — to tease
  15. spell — a short time
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. spell — magic
  18. net — in sport
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. drill — the tool
  21. fall — to drop
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. net — for catching
  24. drill — a practice

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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