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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: chest · deal · wake · ball · roll · ruler · rock · spring

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. ball — a great time
  3. chest — of your body
  4. roll — a list
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. rock — a stone
  7. spring — of water
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. wake — a trail
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. deal — to handle
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. chest — of your body
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. spring — the season
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. spring — a coil
  21. roll — a cake
  22. rock — music
  23. ball — a dance
  24. chest — a box

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