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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 116 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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468
Word bank
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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — a practice
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. tear — to rip
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. drill — army training
  8. field — farmland
  9. bank — for money
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. field — for sport
  14. bank — for money
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mine — for digging
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. bank — of a river
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. tear — from crying
  22. field — a subject
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — dry grass

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