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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. rash — a series
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. tear — from crying
  5. toast — bread
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. tear — to rip
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. scale — in music
  11. snap — to click
  12. scale — size or range
  13. bass — the fish
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bound — certain
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. bass — low music
  19. court — of law
  20. court — of a king
  21. rash — hasty
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. bound — tied together
  24. court — for sport

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