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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: board · nail · rock · snap · field · bat · dip · last

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. snap — to click
  3. field — a subject
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. rock — a stone
  8. field — for sport
  9. last — final
  10. board — to get on
  11. field — farmland
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. dip — to sink
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. board — a committee
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. rock — music
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. last — finally
  24. bat — the animal

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