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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: wake · drill · ball · mine · fork · staff · tube · pit

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. staff — employees
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. drill — a practice
  7. ball — a dance
  8. pit — in a race
  9. mine — for digging
  10. pit — a hole
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. ball — a great time
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. drill — army training
  17. wake — a trail
  18. tube — the underground
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. drill — the tool
  23. fork — in a road
  24. staff — employees

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