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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: nail · dip · lie · arm · cell · bore · court · file

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. bore — to tire
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. court — for sport
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. court — of law
  9. file — a tool
  10. court — of a king
  11. lie — to recline
  12. file — a line of people
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bore — to drill
  18. file — a document
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. dip — to sink
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. cell — in a prison

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