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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. row — a line
  6. row — to paddle
  7. squash — the sport
  8. drill — the tool
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. pound — a weight
  12. snap — to click
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. branch — a division
  17. tube — a container
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. squash — to crush
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. tube — the underground
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. drill — a practice

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