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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. last — final
  4. shower — to wash
  5. bound — tied together
  6. press — a publisher
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. last — finally
  10. last — to go on
  11. press — newspapers
  12. press — to push
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. bound — certain
  15. shower — rain
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. game — a match
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. lean — to bend
  21. lean — thin
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. game — wild animals

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