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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 116 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: nail · wake · land · board · sharp · ground · swing · prune

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. ground — the earth
  3. land — a country
  4. land — ground
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. wake — a trail
  7. ground — crushed
  8. board — a committee
  9. swing — to play on
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. prune — to trim
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. board — to get on
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. swing — music
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. land — to come down
  21. prune — to trim
  22. swing — in golf
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. ground — a position

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