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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: firm · board · nail · deal · cell · ground · snap · land

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. land — ground
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. cell — a phone
  5. firm — decided
  6. ground — crushed
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. land — a country
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. land — to come down
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. ground — the earth
  14. firm — a company
  15. deal — to handle
  16. snap — to click
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. board — to get on
  19. firm — steady
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. ground — a position
  22. cell — in biology
  23. board — a committee
  24. board — a flat piece

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