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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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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: stand · drill · cap · kid · straw · cell · row · bowl

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cell — a phone
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. kid — child
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. cap — a hat
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. stand — to bear
  12. cap — a lid
  13. drill — a practice
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. row — a line
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. drill — army training
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. drill — the tool
  20. kid — to tease
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. row — to paddle

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