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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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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 · hand · bay · tear · kid · stand · rush · root

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. drill — a practice
  3. hand — in cards
  4. stand — to bear
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. hand — help
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — to tease
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. tear — from crying
  12. root — of a plant
  13. drill — the tool
  14. rush — hurry
  15. root — of a word
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. drill — army training
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. root — the cause

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