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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: net · drill · row · bat · present · temple · date · hand

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  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. drill — army training
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. present — a gift
  4. row — to paddle
  5. present — the time now
  6. row — a line
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. present — there
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — in cards
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — for catching
  17. bat — the animal
  18. net — in sport
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. drill — the tool
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. date — the fruit
  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