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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: board · jam · arm · nail · fall · lash · club · file

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. fall — to drop
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. board — a committee
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. fall — to drop
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. club — a group
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. file — a document
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. fall — the season
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. file — a tool
  20. club — for dancing
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. board — to get on
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. file — a line of people

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