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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: foot · straw · present · rush · ball · racket · spell · roll

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. spell — letters
  5. roll — a cake
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. spell — magic
  9. spell — a short time
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. roll — a list
  15. present — there
  16. ball — a great time
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. foot — a measure
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. ball — a dance
  24. present — the time now

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