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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: swing · row · race · game · rock · wound · plane · nail

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. rock — music
  3. game — a match
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rock — a stone
  6. row — a line
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. race — a contest
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. plane — a tool
  12. race — the arms race
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. race — humankind
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wound — an injury
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. swing — to play on
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. swing — in golf
  22. game — wild animals
  23. swing — music
  24. game — a kind of play

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