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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: stand · march · file · racket · pound · drill · bulb · fall

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bulb — for light
  5. march — the month
  6. file — a document
  7. march — music
  8. file — a line of people
  9. march — the month
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. file — a tool
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. fall — to drop
  14. drill — army training
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. drill — a practice
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. fall — the season
  20. pound — a weight
  21. bulb — for light
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. stand — to bear

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