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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: board · last · net · snap · stock · nail · land · pass

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. board — to get on
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. stock — shares
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. net — in sport
  10. last — final
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. land — ground
  14. last — finally
  15. snap — to click
  16. last — to go on
  17. net — for catching
  18. stock — goods
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. land — a country
  22. pass — a permit
  23. net — after costs
  24. land — to come down

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