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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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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: firm · key · nail · drill · cold · snap · land · stand

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. key — in music
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. drill — army training
  5. land — a country
  6. drill — a practice
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. firm — steady
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. land — to come down
  12. key — for a lock
  13. firm — a company
  14. drill — the tool
  15. stand — to bear
  16. cold — an illness
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. land — ground
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. firm — decided
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. cold — not warm
  23. key — the most important part
  24. stand — on your feet

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