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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: bat · content · rash · rest · cabinet · drill · club · present

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. club — for dancing
  3. rest — what's left
  4. present — there
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. club — for golf
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. drill — the tool
  9. content — the amount
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. drill — army training
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. present — the time now
  14. present — a gift
  15. rash — a series
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. club — a group
  20. content — happy
  21. drill — a practice
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bat — the animal
  24. rest — what's left

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