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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: temple · kid · nail · wound · key · land · board · rest

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. land — ground
  3. rest — a break
  4. kid — to tease
  5. land — to come down
  6. board — to get on
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. key — in music
  9. board — a committee
  10. key — for a lock
  11. key — the most important part
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. kid — child
  17. wound — an injury
  18. land — a country
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. wound — an injury
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. rest — what's left

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