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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: season · drill · wind · mine · can · mate · land · racket

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mate — to breed
  3. can — a tin
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. can — to be able to
  6. wind — moving air
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. mate — a friend
  9. land — to come down
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mate — a partner
  12. drill — army training
  13. land — a country
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. land — ground
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. season — in sport
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. wind — moving air
  20. drill — a practice
  21. can — a tin
  22. drill — the tool
  23. season — of the year
  24. racket — for tennis

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