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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 116 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: hand · rash · ball · pit · mate · staff · wake · fall

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. mate — a partner
  3. staff — a stick
  4. wake — a trail
  5. ball — a dance
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. ball — a great time
  8. fall — the season
  9. rash — a series
  10. fall — to drop
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. pit — a hole
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. pit — in a race
  18. mate — a friend
  19. mate — to breed
  20. staff — employees
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. staff — employees
  23. fall — to drop
  24. hand — in cards

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