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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: mate · suit · roll · racket · band · press · hand · ball

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mate — a friend
  3. ball — a great time
  4. band — a music group
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. ball — a dance
  7. press — a publisher
  8. suit — in cards
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. hand — help
  12. roll — a cake
  13. band — a ring
  14. suit — clothes
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. press — to push
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. suit — to fit
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a partner
  22. roll — a list
  23. press — newspapers
  24. hand — in cards

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