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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. wind — moving air
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cell — in biology
  7. land — a country
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. board — to get on
  12. land — ground
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. cell — a phone
  15. land — to come down
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. file — a tool
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. board — a committee
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. file — a line of people
  24. file — a document

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