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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: kick · safe · chair · nail · bat · object · net · saw

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. net — after costs
  6. object — to protest
  7. saw — the tool
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. chair — a leader
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. saw — the tool
  12. object — an aim
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. net — for catching
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. object — a thing
  21. net — in sport
  22. kick — in football
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — for baseball

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