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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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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: wind · board · arm · rock · can · file · nail · bat

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. bat — the animal
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. can — a tin
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. rock — music
  12. file — a document
  13. file — a line of people
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. file — a tool
  17. board — a committee
  18. board — to get on
  19. can — to be able to
  20. wind — moving air
  21. rock — a stone
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. can — a tin

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