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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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. row — a line
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. land — a country
  11. race — humankind
  12. land — ground
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. race — a contest
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. dip — to sink
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. land — to come down
  22. row — to paddle
  23. race — the arms race
  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