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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 120 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: can · last · squash · march · drill · cap · firm · clip

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. squash — the sport
  3. can — to be able to
  4. cap — a lid
  5. can — a tin
  6. can — a tin
  7. squash — to crush
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. last — finally
  10. cap — a hat
  11. firm — decided
  12. march — music
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — steady
  15. last — final
  16. march — the month
  17. last — to go on
  18. clip — to cut
  19. cap — of ice
  20. march — the month
  21. drill — a practice
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — a video
  24. drill — the tool

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