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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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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: nail · bulb · drill · fall · deal · straw · mine · cold

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. drill — a practice
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. drill — the tool
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — not warm
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. bulb — for light
  11. fall — to drop
  12. deal — to handle
  13. mine — for digging
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. fall — the season
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. drill — army training
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bulb — for light

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