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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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. file — a line of people
  4. mine — for digging
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — for light
  7. board — to get on
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. perch — the fish
  10. object — to protest
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — a position
  14. file — a tool
  15. file — a document
  16. object — an aim
  17. board — a committee
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. object — a thing
  22. ground — the earth
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bulb — of a plant

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