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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: land · mug · date · nail · last · pop · wound · kick

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wound — an injury
  3. pop — soda
  4. mug — a face
  5. last — final
  6. wound — an injury
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. last — finally
  9. kick — in football
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. land — to come down
  13. pop — music
  14. pop — to visit
  15. land — a country
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. mug — to rob
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. last — to go on
  21. land — ground
  22. mug — a cup
  23. date — the fruit
  24. date — on the calendar

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