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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. last — finally
  3. row — a line
  4. file — a line of people
  5. row — to paddle
  6. mine — for digging
  7. last — to go on
  8. bank — for money
  9. last — final
  10. bank — for money
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bank — of a river
  13. file — a document
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. file — a tool

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