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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. sharp — clever
  6. wind — moving air
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. spring — of water
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. spring — a coil
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. cell — in biology
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. cell — a phone
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. band — a music group
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. spring — the season
  24. band — a ring

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