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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: mug · track · land · swing · wound · mine · wind · nail

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. mine — for digging
  5. track — a path
  6. wind — moving air
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. track — a song
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — a face
  11. swing — to play on
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. track — to keep track
  14. mug — to rob
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. wind — moving air
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — a country
  19. wound — an injury
  20. swing — music
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. swing — in golf
  23. land — ground
  24. wound — an injury

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