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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bound — certain
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. swing — to play on
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. game — a match
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. land — to come down
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wake — a trail
  18. swing — music
  19. game — wild animals
  20. swing — in golf
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bound — tied together

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