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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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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: march · deal · firm · bat · mug · shower · lash · drill

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. deal — to handle
  3. firm — decided
  4. firm — a company
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. bat — the animal
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. drill — the tool
  9. shower — rain
  10. drill — army training
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. mug — to rob
  15. shower — to wash
  16. mug — a face
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. mug — a cup
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. march — the month
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. drill — a practice
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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