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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: nail · kick · bass · drill · jam · branch · cold · kid

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. cold — an illness
  5. drill — the tool
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bass — the fish
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. cold — not warm
  12. branch — a division
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. drill — a practice
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. drill — army training
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. kid — child
  23. bass — low music
  24. kid — to tease

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