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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 120 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: staff · rash · cold · rule · straw · ball · mouse · racket

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. staff — a stick
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. rash — hasty
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. rule — government
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. cold — an illness
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. staff — employees
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. rash — a series
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. rule — a law
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. cold — not warm
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. staff — employees
  23. ball — a dance
  24. cold — the Cold War

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