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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: race · nail · kick · straw · drill · wind

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. race — the arms race
  4. wind — moving air
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. race — humankind
  9. kick — in football
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. wind — moving air
  12. race — a contest
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. drill — army training
  16. drill — the tool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. wind — to turn a key

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