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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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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: straw · ball · coach · kid · drill · wave · kick · track

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. drill — army training
  5. kid — child
  6. track — to keep track
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. kid — to tease
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. track — a path
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. track — a song
  15. drill — a practice
  16. ball — a dance
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. ball — a great time
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. drill — the tool
  24. kick — in football

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