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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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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: clip · race · nail · rule · foot · craft · land · pound

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. rule — a law
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. land — a country
  6. pound — a weight
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. race — a contest
  9. clip — a video
  10. craft — boats
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. foot — a measure
  13. land — ground
  14. rule — government
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. craft — a skill
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. race — the arms race
  19. clip — to cut
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. race — humankind
  23. clip — for paper
  24. foot — part of the body

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