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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. kid — to tease
  5. board — to get on
  6. board — a committee
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. squash — the sport
  9. cold — not warm
  10. wound — an injury
  11. squash — to crush
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. chip — to eat
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. kid — child
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. chip — for betting
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. wound — an injury

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