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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: game · cue · snap · jam · nail · arm · land · march

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. game — a match
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. land — a country
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. march — the month
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. land — to come down
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. march — the month
  13. cue — a signal
  14. snap — to click
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. cue — for pool
  18. land — ground
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. cue — a hint
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. march — music
  23. game — wild animals
  24. nail — for a hammer

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