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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: mine · nail · branch · bat · last · chair · fan · mouse

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. chair — a leader
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. last — to go on
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. branch — a division
  17. last — final
  18. bat — the animal
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. mine — for digging
  24. last — finally

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