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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: lie · row · drill · coach · spring · rock · fall · bat

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. spring — the season
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. spring — a coil
  7. drill — army training
  8. fall — to drop
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. fall — the season
  13. rock — music
  14. drill — the tool
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. lie — to recline
  17. bat — the animal
  18. fall — to drop
  19. spring — of water
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. row — to paddle
  23. rock — a stone
  24. row — a line

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