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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.

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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: hand · club · stick · lie · snap · land · staff · bat

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. hand — in cards
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. snap — to click
  8. lie — to recline
  9. land — ground
  10. staff — a stick
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. staff — employees
  13. bat — the animal
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. club — a group
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. hand — help
  19. staff — employees
  20. club — for golf
  21. land — to come down
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. land — a country
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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