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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: staff · drill · snap · row · kid · bat · stock · roll

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. bat — the animal
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. roll — a list
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. stock — shares
  10. staff — a stick
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. drill — a practice
  13. staff — employees
  14. kid — child
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. drill — the tool
  18. roll — a cake
  19. kid — to tease
  20. staff — employees
  21. row — to paddle
  22. stock — goods
  23. snap — to click
  24. row — a line

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