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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 120 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: fall · pop · saw · lie · mark · mine · pitcher · drill

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. drill — the tool
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. pop — soda
  7. pop — music
  8. mark — a trace
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. saw — the tool
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. saw — the tool
  16. drill — army training
  17. fall — to drop
  18. lie — to recline
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. drill — a practice
  24. pop — to visit

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