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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. bound — certain
  3. file — a tool
  4. bound — tied together
  5. club — a group
  6. mine — for digging
  7. club — for dancing
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bear — the animal
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bear — the animal
  14. file — a line of people
  15. content — happy
  16. club — for golf
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. file — a document

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