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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 120 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: hand · pitch · rash · wave · ball · lean · last · drill

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. hand — in cards
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. last — final
  6. drill — a practice
  7. lean — to bend
  8. rash — a series
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. drill — the tool
  12. pitch — completely
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. rash — hasty
  17. last — to go on
  18. lean — thin
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. last — finally
  21. drill — army training
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. ball — a dance
  24. hand — help

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