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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.

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: row · land · squash · drill · clip · mug · stand · arm

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. mug — a cup
  3. stand — to bear
  4. squash — the sport
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. mug — a face
  7. drill — the tool
  8. row — a line
  9. squash — to crush
  10. drill — a practice
  11. land — ground
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. mug — to rob
  15. clip — to cut
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. land — a country
  19. land — to come down
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. clip — for paper
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. clip — a video
  24. row — to paddle

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