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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. roll — a cake
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. land — to come down
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. saw — the tool
  10. wind — moving air
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. saw — the tool
  14. roll — a list
  15. land — ground
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. court — of law
  18. wind — moving air
  19. court — of a king
  20. pound — a weight
  21. land — a country
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. mark — a grade
  24. court — for sport

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