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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. shower — rain
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. shower — to wash
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stock — shares
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. chair — a leader
  14. bound — tied together
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. mine — for digging
  17. stock — goods
  18. mine — belonging to me

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