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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.

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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: hide · drill · bat · rest · plane · straw · bound · pitch

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bound — tied together
  3. rest — what's left
  4. drill — army training
  5. drill — a practice
  6. bound — certain
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bat — the animal
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. plane — a tool
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bound — obliged
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. pitch — a sports field

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