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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 116 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: board · clip · squash · key · rush · drill · firm · march

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. clip — to cut
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. drill — a practice
  6. key — for a lock
  7. clip — a video
  8. march — music
  9. board — a committee
  10. squash — the sport
  11. firm — decided
  12. squash — to crush
  13. drill — army training
  14. march — the month
  15. rush — hurry
  16. key — the most important part
  17. march — the month
  18. clip — for paper
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. board — to get on
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. firm — a company
  23. drill — the tool
  24. key — in music

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