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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: cold · cabinet · last · current · row · lean · drill · game

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. row — to paddle
  3. last — to go on
  4. lean — thin
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. current — of water
  7. lean — to bend
  8. cold — not warm
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. last — finally
  11. game — a match
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. row — a line
  15. last — final
  16. drill — a practice
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. current — electric
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. game — wild animals
  22. current — happening now
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. drill — army training

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