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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 120 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: cold · staff · nail · lash · pit · mine · arm · cell

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cold — an illness
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cell — a phone
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. cell — in biology
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. pit — in a race
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. pit — a hole
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. staff — a stick
  17. mine — for digging
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — employees
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. cold — not warm
  24. arm — 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