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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: march · pit · straw · drill · arm · stem · lash · hide

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. drill — a practice
  3. drill — the tool
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. drill — army training
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. pit — in a race
  8. march — the month
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. march — the month
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. march — music
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stem — a stem cell

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