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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: nail · rash · court · foot · roll · land · row · drill

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — a line
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. court — of a king
  7. foot — a measure
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — a series
  11. row — to paddle
  12. roll — a cake
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. court — for sport
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. drill — the tool
  21. land — a country
  22. court — of law
  23. roll — a list
  24. drill — army training

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