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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 · bear · jam · lean · pass · nail · kid · land

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. land — to come down
  3. land — ground
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. pass — a permit
  6. bear — the animal
  7. kid — child
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. lean — thin
  10. drill — a practice
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. lean — to bend
  17. bear — the animal
  18. kid — to tease
  19. drill — army training
  20. drill — the tool
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. land — a country
  24. nail — for a hammer

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