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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 116 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: bore · drill · pound · mine · land · stand · saw · coach

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — the tool
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. land — a country
  5. drill — the tool
  6. mine — for digging
  7. land — to come down
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. bore — to drill
  11. stand — to bear
  12. drill — army training
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. drill — a practice
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. pound — a weight
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bore — to tire
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. land — ground

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