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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: race · mouse · ball · branch · mine · file · spell · drill

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. ball — a great time
  3. file — a line of people
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. race — humankind
  6. ball — a dance
  7. race — the arms race
  8. file — a document
  9. race — a contest
  10. spell — a short time
  11. drill — army training
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. drill — a practice
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. branch — a division
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mine — for digging
  19. spell — magic
  20. file — a tool
  21. spell — letters
  22. drill — the tool
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. mine — belonging to me

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