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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: straw · bore · ruler · ground · band · shower · plane · drill

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  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. band — a ring
  2. ground — crushed
  3. bore — to drill
  4. drill — the tool
  5. band — a music group
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. shower — rain
  14. plane — a tool
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. bore — to tire
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. shower — to wash
  20. ground — a position
  21. drill — a practice
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. ground — the earth
  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