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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: hand · bank · kid · tear · sharp · present · rush · drill

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. present — there
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. tear — to rip
  7. kid — child
  8. bank — for money
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bank — of a river
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. drill — army training
  13. tear — from crying
  14. hand — help
  15. bank — for money
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. drill — a practice
  18. hand — in cards
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. present — the time now
  21. rush — hurry
  22. drill — the tool
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. tear — from crying

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