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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: drill · land · cap · pound · hide · rock · cold · foot

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — of ice
  5. drill — army training
  6. rock — music
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. cap — a hat
  10. land — a country
  11. land — to come down
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. pound — a weight
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. cold — not warm
  17. land — ground
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. foot — a measure
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. rock — a stone

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