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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: racket · drill · prune · tube · rest · chair · patient · spring

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rest — what's left
  4. drill — a practice
  5. spring — of water
  6. tube — the underground
  7. drill — the tool
  8. prune — to trim
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — a container
  11. spring — a coil
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. drill — army training
  14. rest — what's left
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. spring — the season
  20. prune — to trim
  21. rest — a break
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. chair — a leader
  24. racket — a loud noise

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