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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: trunk · pound · shower · drill · racket · saw · ball · rest

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. rest — a break
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. saw — the tool
  6. pound — a weight
  7. ball — a dance
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. rest — what's left
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — army training
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. drill — a practice
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. saw — the tool
  20. rest — what's left
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. shower — rain
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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