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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: kid · cold · suit · board · drill · stock · bulb · last

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. drill — the tool
  3. kid — to tease
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. last — finally
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — final
  9. drill — a practice
  10. board — to get on
  11. stock — goods
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bulb — for light
  14. kid — child
  15. suit — to fit
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. suit — in cards
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. stock — shares
  20. board — a committee
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. suit — clothes
  23. drill — army training
  24. bulb — for light

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