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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: bat · mark · game · lean · drill · ball · staff · spell

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mark — a trace
  3. drill — army training
  4. ball — a great time
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. staff — employees
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — a short time
  10. game — a match
  11. game — wild animals
  12. lean — to bend
  13. drill — a practice
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. lean — thin
  16. ball — a dance
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. drill — the tool
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. spell — magic
  21. bat — the animal
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. staff — a stick
  24. staff — employees

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