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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: foot · stock · spell · land · row · drill · pop · hide

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. pop — music
  3. spell — letters
  4. foot — a measure
  5. land — to come down
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. drill — a practice
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. drill — army training
  11. row — to paddle
  12. land — ground
  13. land — a country
  14. drill — the tool
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. pop — to visit
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. pop — soda
  19. spell — a short time
  20. stock — goods
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. stock — shares
  23. spell — magic
  24. row — a line

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