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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 · bat · ground · season · chip · firm · roll · row

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. roll — a cake
  3. firm — a company
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. drill — army training
  6. row — a line
  7. season — of the year
  8. drill — a practice
  9. row — to paddle
  10. firm — decided
  11. chip — for betting
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. ground — crushed
  14. bat — the animal
  15. roll — a list
  16. drill — the tool
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. firm — steady
  19. ground — a position
  20. chip — to eat
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. season — in sport
  24. ground — the earth

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