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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: stand · content · cap · racket · row · pop · drill · straw

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. cap — a lid
  3. stand — to bear
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. content — the amount
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. cap — a hat
  9. drill — army training
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. drill — the tool
  13. row — to paddle
  14. drill — a practice
  15. content — happy
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. pop — music
  18. cap — of ice
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pop — soda
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. row — a line
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. racket — for tennis

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