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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. chest — of your body
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. saw — the tool
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — the arms race
  9. bank — for money
  10. clip — to cut
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. saw — the tool
  13. bank — for money
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. clip — a video
  16. bank — of a river
  17. race — humankind
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. chest — of your body
  21. clip — for paper
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — for a hammer

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