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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. roll — a cake
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. bear — the animal
  6. staff — employees
  7. staff — a stick
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a ring
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. band — a music group
  14. chest — a box
  15. bear — the animal
  16. row — a line
  17. roll — a list
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. pit — in a race
  21. row — to paddle
  22. staff — employees
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. pit — a hole

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