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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: drill · kid · lash · pitch · hand · object · rule · mine

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  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. hand — in cards
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. drill — army training
  4. rule — government
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. object — to protest
  7. object — an aim
  8. mine — for digging
  9. object — a thing
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. pitch — completely
  12. rule — a law
  13. hand — help
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. drill — the tool
  16. kid — to tease
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. kid — child
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. pitch — a sports field
  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