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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: drill · band · snap · mate · cap · bowl · bark · row

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. snap — to click
  3. mate — a friend
  4. cap — a lid
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bark — to shout
  7. row — a line
  8. cap — a hat
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. drill — army training
  11. row — to paddle
  12. band — a music group
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. mate — a partner
  15. band — a ring
  16. cap — of ice
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. mate — to breed
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. drill — a practice
  24. row — a quarrel

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