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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: bowl · rest · track · last · drill · mouse · bat · bear

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. last — final
  8. last — finally
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. last — to go on
  14. rest — what's left
  15. drill — the tool
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. track — to keep track
  18. rest — a break
  19. track — a path
  20. drill — a practice
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. drill — army training
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bear — the animal

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