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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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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  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. squash — to crush
  2. mine — for digging
  3. drill — the tool
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. race — humankind
  6. bank — of a river
  7. hand — in cards
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. race — the arms race
  11. roll — a list
  12. hand — help
  13. race — a contest
  14. drill — army training
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. bank — for money
  18. squash — the sport
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. bank — for money
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. roll — a cake
  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