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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 116 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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. saw — the tool
  3. key — the most important part
  4. craft — a skill
  5. craft — boats
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. kid — child
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. saw — the tool
  10. chair — a leader
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — a contest
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. bound — certain
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. tube — a container
  18. bound — tied together
  19. tube — the underground
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. key — for a lock
  22. kid — to tease
  23. key — in music
  24. race — the arms race

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