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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: court · row · drill · fork · race · hide

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. race — the arms race
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. court — of law
  5. drill — a practice
  6. court — of a king
  7. court — for sport
  8. race — humankind
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — to paddle
  13. race — a contest
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. fork — in a road
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. row — a line
  18. drill — the tool

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