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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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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: bay · content · drill · racket · band · race · straw · coach

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. content — the amount
  3. drill — a practice
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. band — a music group
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. drill — army training
  10. race — the arms race
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. race — humankind
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. band — a ring
  18. race — a contest
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. content — happy
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. coach — a trainer

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