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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: land · charge · roll · bound · ground · kid · drill · pop

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. kid — child
  3. pop — music
  4. drill — the tool
  5. land — to come down
  6. bound — tied together
  7. kid — to tease
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. land — ground
  10. charge — a price
  11. pop — to visit
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — the earth
  14. roll — a cake
  15. bound — certain
  16. charge — electricity
  17. ground — a position
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. charge — in control
  20. drill — a practice
  21. land — a country
  22. roll — a list
  23. bound — obliged
  24. pop — soda

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