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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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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: key · nail · arm · snap · race · saw · chair · chest

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. key — the most important part
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. race — the arms race
  5. race — humankind
  6. saw — the tool
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. snap — to click
  10. chest — of your body
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. chair — a leader
  14. key — in music
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. chest — a box
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. race — a contest
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. key — for a lock
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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