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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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Word bank
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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: nail · fine · land · ground · staff · bowl · row · net

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. net — after costs
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. ground — crushed
  5. net — for catching
  6. fine — all right
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. land — a country
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — employees
  11. land — to come down
  12. land — ground
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. fine — high quality
  16. ground — the earth
  17. row — to paddle
  18. net — in sport
  19. staff — a stick
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. row — a line
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. ground — a position
  24. nail — on a finger

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