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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. game — wild animals
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. band — a music group
  7. race — the arms race
  8. spring — of water
  9. game — a match
  10. vault — a safe
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. spring — a coil
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. band — a ring
  19. spring — the season
  20. race — a contest
  21. race — humankind
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. fan — a supporter
  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