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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
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: rash · spell · drill · stick · prune · content · bat · game

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rash — a series
  6. drill — army training
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. content — happy
  11. spell — letters
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. drill — the tool
  14. game — wild animals
  15. content — the amount
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. drill — a practice
  20. spell — magic
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bat — the animal
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. spell — a short time

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