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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: land · branch · rock · drill · can · racket · chair · ground

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. land — ground
  3. ground — a position
  4. drill — the tool
  5. drill — a practice
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. can — to be able to
  8. rock — music
  9. drill — army training
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. ground — crushed
  13. branch — a division
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. land — to come down
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. chair — a leader
  18. rock — a stone
  19. can — a tin
  20. can — a tin
  21. ground — the earth
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. land — a country

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