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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: key · rush · net · present · swing · hand · game · drill

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. net — in sport
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — hurry
  5. drill — the tool
  6. game — wild animals
  7. present — the time now
  8. present — a gift
  9. swing — to play on
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. key — in music
  12. swing — music
  13. game — a match
  14. net — after costs
  15. hand — help
  16. drill — a practice
  17. net — for catching
  18. swing — in golf
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. key — the most important part
  22. key — for a lock
  23. hand — in cards
  24. present — there

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