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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 · saw · hand · chair · object · suit · drill · staff

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. object — to protest
  3. suit — in cards
  4. suit — clothes
  5. chair — a leader
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. suit — to fit
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. staff — employees
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. staff — employees
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. saw — the tool
  15. drill — army training
  16. object — a thing
  17. hand — help
  18. drill — a practice
  19. hand — in cards
  20. saw — the tool
  21. drill — the tool
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. object — an aim
  24. staff — a stick

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