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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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. fine — high quality
  4. face — to point toward
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. bank — of a river
  7. file — a tool
  8. face — to confront
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. file — a document
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. bank — for money
  14. game — wild animals
  15. file — a line of people
  16. stem — to come from
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — a match
  20. fine — all right
  21. face — part of the head
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. bank — for money
  24. straw — dry grass

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