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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 · stem · hide · straw · plane · stand · lash · shower

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. plane — a tool
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. stand — to bear
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. drill — army training
  15. drill — the tool
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. drill — a practice
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. shower — rain
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. plane — an aircraft

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