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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cabinet · kick · lie · field · straw · drill · pitcher · mine

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. drill — a practice
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. mine — for digging
  6. drill — army training
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. field — for sport
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. field — farmland
  13. drill — the tool
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. field — a subject
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. kick — in football
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. lie — to recline
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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