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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: straw · patient · track · drill · saw · row · bulb · squash

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. saw — the tool
  3. squash — the sport
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bulb — for light
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. row — to paddle
  8. track — a song
  9. row — a line
  10. track — a path
  11. track — to keep track
  12. saw — the tool
  13. drill — army training
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — the tool
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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