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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 120 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: march · drill · chip · ball · net · straw · racket · squash

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. march — music
  3. squash — the sport
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. march — the month
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. net — after costs
  8. drill — a practice
  9. squash — to crush
  10. drill — the tool
  11. chip — for betting
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. ball — a dance
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. ball — a great time
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. march — the month
  18. drill — army training
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. net — in sport
  21. chip — to eat
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. net — for catching

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