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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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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: cell · firm · court · saw · dip · kick · chest · drill

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. saw — the tool
  4. chest — of your body
  5. drill — the tool
  6. chest — a box
  7. drill — a practice
  8. cell — in biology
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. court — of a king
  11. cell — a phone
  12. chest — of your body
  13. firm — steady
  14. court — for sport
  15. dip — to sink
  16. firm — a company
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. saw — the tool
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. firm — decided
  23. kick — in football
  24. court — of law

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