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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. drill — a practice
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — to come from
  6. drill — the tool
  7. vault — a safe
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. fork — in a road
  10. cold — an illness
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. cold — not warm
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. jam — in traffic

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