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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: drill · mine · cap · cold · ruler · file · squash · foot

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. file — a tool
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. cold — an illness
  5. mine — for digging
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. file — a line of people
  11. drill — the tool
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. file — a document
  14. cap — a lid
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. squash — to crush
  19. squash — the sport
  20. cap — of ice
  21. drill — a practice
  22. cap — a hat
  23. drill — army training
  24. cold — not warm

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