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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. degree — from a university
  8. present — a gift
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. present — the time now
  12. degree — temperature
  13. present — there
  14. lean — to bend
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. degree — an amount
  17. bound — certain
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. band — a ring
  20. bound — tied together
  21. game — wild animals
  22. lean — thin
  23. game — a match
  24. band — a music group

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