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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pit · hide · ground · lean · drill · roll · file · lie

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. drill — army training
  5. drill — a practice
  6. pit — a hole
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. pit — in a race
  11. lie — to recline
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. file — a document
  14. ground — crushed
  15. lean — to bend
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. roll — a cake
  18. lean — thin
  19. file — a line of people
  20. drill — the tool
  21. ground — a position
  22. file — a tool
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. ground — the earth

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