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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 116 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. can — a tin
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. club — for golf
  5. wind — moving air
  6. club — a group
  7. can — a tin
  8. bat — the animal
  9. tear — to rip
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. can — to be able to
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. tear — from crying
  20. club — for dancing
  21. fork — in a road
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wake — a trail
  24. fork — a garden 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