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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 · branch · land · wound · foot · pitcher · deal

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. deal — to handle
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. branch — a division
  7. wound — an injury
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. board — to get on
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. foot — a measure
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. land — ground
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. wound — an injury
  21. land — to come down
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. board — a committee

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