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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: game · land · mate · wind · track · drill · rush · cabinet

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. land — to come down
  4. game — a match
  5. land — a country
  6. drill — the tool
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. drill — army training
  9. rush — hurry
  10. game — wild animals
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. track — to keep track
  13. track — a path
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. land — ground
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. mate — a partner
  18. mate — to breed
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. mate — a friend
  22. track — a song
  23. drill — a practice
  24. wind — moving air

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