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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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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: ground · hide · drill · race · arm · cell · mug · mine

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. mug — a cup
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. mine — for digging
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. race — a contest
  7. cell — a phone
  8. race — humankind
  9. mug — to rob
  10. ground — a position
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. cell — in biology
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mug — a face
  15. race — the arms race
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. ground — the earth
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. ground — crushed
  23. drill — a practice
  24. drill — army training

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