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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 120 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: land · branch · key · nail · pitcher · pitch · snap · rule

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. key — for a lock
  4. rule — a law
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. land — ground
  8. snap — to click
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. key — in music
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. rule — government
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. key — the most important part
  21. pitch — completely
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — a country
  24. branch — a division

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