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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: pound · drill · straw · bowl · spell · wind · deal · nail

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. spell — magic
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — the tool
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. spell — letters
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. deal — to handle
  17. pound — a weight
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. spell — a short time
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. deal — a big deal

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