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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 · bat · drill · march · bowl · spell · tube · lean

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. tube — a container
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. lean — thin
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. march — the month
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — to bend
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. spell — magic
  17. march — music
  18. bat — the animal
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — letters
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. drill — army training
  23. tube — the underground
  24. march — the month

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