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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: net · key · rash · wake · field · ball · ruler · straw

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. ball — a great time
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. key — for a lock
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. net — after costs
  9. field — a subject
  10. wake — a trail
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. net — in sport
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. key — the most important part
  16. field — for sport
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. field — farmland
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. rash — a series
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. net — for catching
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. key — in music

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