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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: cell · bass · nail · hand · rule · wind · land · jam

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. land — to come down
  3. bass — the fish
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bass — low music
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. hand — in cards
  15. land — a country
  16. rule — government
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rule — a law
  19. land — ground
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. cell — a phone
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. cell — in a prison

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