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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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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: rash · mate · racket · game · rock · straw · drill · cell

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rash — a series
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cell — a phone
  6. rock — a stone
  7. rock — music
  8. mate — a partner
  9. drill — a practice
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. game — a match
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. drill — army training
  17. cell — in biology
  18. mate — a friend
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. rash — hasty
  24. mate — to breed

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