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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 · hide · hand · face · nail · sharp · root · band

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. hand — help
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. face — to point toward
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. root — the cause
  9. land — ground
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. band — a music group
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. band — a ring
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. root — of a word
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. land — a country
  19. sharp — clever
  20. face — to confront
  21. hand — in cards
  22. land — to come down
  23. root — of a plant
  24. face — part of the head

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