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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: spring · bark · drill · lash · patient · pitch · straw · stand

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. drill — the tool
  3. stand — to bear
  4. pitch — completely
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. spring — a coil
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. bark — to shout
  14. drill — army training
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. spring — the season
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. spring — of water

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