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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: object · last · firm · plane · race · land · spell · nail

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. firm — steady
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. land — a country
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. last — to go on
  8. race — humankind
  9. spell — magic
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. race — a contest
  12. object — to protest
  13. object — a thing
  14. spell — letters
  15. plane — a tool
  16. firm — decided
  17. object — an aim
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. race — the arms race
  20. land — ground
  21. spell — a short time
  22. firm — a company
  23. last — final
  24. last — finally

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