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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: bass · fall · drill · rock · roll · mine · bat · pitch

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. fall — to drop
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bat — the animal
  8. rock — music
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. drill — the tool
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bass — low music
  14. roll — a cake
  15. rock — a stone
  16. pitch — completely
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. roll — a list
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bass — the fish
  23. fall — the season
  24. drill — a practice

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