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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 116 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: bowl · wave · face · pound · nail · file · drill · capital

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. drill — a practice
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a city
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a document
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. pound — a weight
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. face — to confront
  16. drill — the tool
  17. drill — army training
  18. file — a tool
  19. face — to point toward
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. face — part of the head
  24. nail — for a hammer

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