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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. ground — crushed
  4. wind — moving air
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. chip — for betting
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chip — to eat
  13. ground — the earth
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. race — humankind
  16. fine — all right
  17. fine — high quality
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. mark — a trace
  20. ground — a position
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. race — the arms race
  23. mark — a grade
  24. race — a contest

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