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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ruler · deal · nail · swing · clip · field

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. clip — to cut
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. swing — to play on
  5. field — farmland
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. deal — to handle
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. field — for sport
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. field — a subject
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. swing — music
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. swing — in golf

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