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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. hand — in cards
  3. staff — employees
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. ground — the earth
  6. staff — a stick
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — crushed
  11. bore — to tire
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. hand — help
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. bore — to drill
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a city
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. leaves — to go away
  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