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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 120 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: ground · bore · drill · bat · rest · last · arm · hide

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. rest — what's left
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. ground — the earth
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. rest — a break
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bore — to tire
  10. drill — army training
  11. ground — crushed
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bat — the animal
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. last — final
  16. ground — a position
  17. drill — the tool
  18. last — finally
  19. rest — what's left
  20. last — to go on
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. drill — a practice
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bore — gave birth

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