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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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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: land · lie · row · fan · nail · saw · key · snap

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. row — to paddle
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. land — to come down
  5. saw — the tool
  6. land — ground
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. key — the most important part
  9. saw — the tool
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. snap — to click
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. key — for a lock
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. row — a line
  22. key — in music
  23. land — a country
  24. nail — for a hammer

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