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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: club · hand · drill · degree · foot · lie · stock · cabinet

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. hand — in cards
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. drill — army training
  5. degree — an amount
  6. stock — goods
  7. hand — help
  8. lie — to recline
  9. degree — temperature
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. drill — a practice
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. club — a group
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. club — for golf
  18. drill — the tool
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. club — for dancing
  21. foot — a measure
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. stock — shares
  24. degree — from a university

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