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

Word bank: drill · march · bank · kick · kid · row

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. kid — child
  3. kick — in football
  4. bank — of a river
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. row — to paddle
  9. bank — for money
  10. row — a line
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — a practice
  13. march — the month
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. kid — to tease
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. bank — for money

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