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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: mouse · land · nail · wind · kid · spring · squash · jam

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — ground
  3. squash — to crush
  4. spring — of water
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. kid — child
  9. spring — a coil
  10. kid — to tease
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. wind — moving air
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. squash — the sport
  20. land — to come down
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. spring — the season

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