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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: row · kick · nail · cell · net · wound · file · sharp

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  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. cell — in biology
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. sharp — clever
  5. net — in sport
  6. net — after costs
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. wound — an injury
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. wound — an injury
  11. file — a document
  12. row — a line
  13. row — to paddle
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. file — a tool
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. net — for catching
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. file — a line of people
  21. cell — a phone
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. kick — in football
  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