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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: cell · kick · drill · roll · march · lash · present · plane

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. drill — a practice
  3. kick — in football
  4. march — the month
  5. drill — army training
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. present — a gift
  9. drill — the tool
  10. present — there
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. roll — a list
  13. present — the time now
  14. march — the month
  15. cell — in biology
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. cell — a phone
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. march — music
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. plane — a tool
  24. plane — in geometry

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