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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. hand — help
  4. current — happening now
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. row — to paddle
  7. row — a line
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. staff — a stick
  10. current — of water
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. current — electric
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. staff — employees
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. bat — the animal
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. plane — a tool
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. staff — employees

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