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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: hand · court · firm · pop · lie · pound · drill · cold

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. firm — decided
  3. pound — a weight
  4. pop — soda
  5. firm — steady
  6. court — of a king
  7. pop — to visit
  8. hand — help
  9. cold — an illness
  10. pop — music
  11. drill — a practice
  12. hand — in cards
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. court — of law
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. firm — a company
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. cold — not warm
  20. drill — the tool
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — to recline
  24. court — for sport

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