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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: hand · drill · march · trunk · spring · bay · deal · club

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. drill — a practice
  3. march — music
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. deal — to handle
  10. drill — the tool
  11. hand — help
  12. spring — of water
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. march — the month
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. spring — a coil
  17. drill — army training
  18. spring — the season
  19. club — a group
  20. march — the month
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. hand — in cards
  24. club — for dancing

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