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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: row · pit · mine · rest · racket · tube · rock · drill

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pit — in a race
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. drill — a practice
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. rock — a stone
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. row — a line
  11. rest — what's left
  12. drill — army training
  13. tube — the underground
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. row — to paddle
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. mine — for digging
  19. drill — the tool
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. rock — music
  22. pit — a hole
  23. rest — a break
  24. racket — for tennis

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