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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. wound — an injury
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. drill — the tool
  7. drill — army training
  8. rash — a series
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. drill — a practice
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. wound — an injury
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. degree — an amount
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. degree — temperature
  19. degree — from a university
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. rash — hasty
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. stand — to bear

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