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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: stick · press · track · board · cell · drill · cold · snap

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. drill — a practice
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. snap — to click
  7. board — a committee
  8. cell — in biology
  9. press — newspapers
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. track — a song
  12. cell — a phone
  13. track — to keep track
  14. track — a path
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. board — to get on
  18. drill — the tool
  19. press — to push
  20. press — a publisher
  21. cold — not warm
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. cold — an illness
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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