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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. current — electric
  5. pound — a weight
  6. drill — the tool
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. lie — to recline
  9. squash — to crush
  10. drill — army training
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. squash — the sport
  14. current — of water
  15. wake — a trail
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. current — happening now
  18. hand — help
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. bound — certain
  23. bound — obliged
  24. drill — a practice

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