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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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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: racket · staff · drill · face · pit · chest · ball · snap

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. ball — a dance
  4. staff — employees
  5. chest — of your body
  6. face — to confront
  7. staff — employees
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. face — part of the head
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. drill — army training
  14. drill — a practice
  15. face — to point toward
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. ball — a great time
  20. snap — to click
  21. chest — a box
  22. chest — of your body
  23. staff — a stick
  24. ball — a round shape

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