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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: present · bat · cue · row · straw · drill · firm · dip

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. cue — a hint
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. present — a gift
  6. firm — steady
  7. row — a line
  8. drill — army training
  9. dip — to sink
  10. firm — a company
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. cue — a signal
  13. present — there
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. drill — the tool
  16. present — the time now
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. drill — a practice
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. row — to paddle
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. firm — decided
  24. cue — for pool

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