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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 · plane · kid · cold · fork · chip · nail · key

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. cold — not warm
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. drill — the tool
  7. kid — to tease
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. kid — child
  11. plane — a tool
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. chip — for betting
  15. drill — army training
  16. fork — in a road
  17. key — the most important part
  18. chip — to eat
  19. key — for a lock
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. cold — an illness
  23. drill — a practice
  24. key — in music

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