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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: racket · bat · net · wake · drill · arm · band · date

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. drill — army training
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. net — in sport
  9. drill — a practice
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. wake — a trail
  12. net — for catching
  13. date — the fruit
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a ring
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. drill — the tool
  22. net — after costs
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. bat — for baseball

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