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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: tear · nail · rest · wound · stick · fan · chest · roll

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. roll — a list
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. tear — from crying
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wound — an injury
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. roll — a cake
  13. chest — of your body
  14. rest — a break
  15. tear — from crying
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. tear — to rip
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wound — an injury
  24. chest — a box

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