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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. bound — tied together
  3. wound — an injury
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. bound — obliged
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. net — for catching
  9. net — after costs
  10. swing — music
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. band — a ring
  13. net — in sport
  14. wound — an injury
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. band — a music group
  17. swing — in golf
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. swing — to play on
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — to cut
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. clip — for paper

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