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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. key — the most important part
  3. stock — shares
  4. mug — a face
  5. mug — to rob
  6. bound — certain
  7. craft — boats
  8. bound — tied together
  9. key — for a lock
  10. craft — a skill
  11. stock — goods
  12. staff — employees
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. bass — the fish
  16. key — in music
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bound — obliged
  19. staff — a stick
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. mug — a cup
  22. bass — low music
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. wound — an injury

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