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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 120 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: pitcher · drill · last · stock · rule · field · race · lash

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. field — for sport
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. drill — the tool
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. last — finally
  7. stock — shares
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — a subject
  10. race — humankind
  11. rule — government
  12. last — to go on
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. stock — goods
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. last — final
  18. rule — a law
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. race — the arms race
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. race — a contest
  23. drill — a practice
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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