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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. shower — to wash
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. key — the most important part
  5. shower — rain
  6. bound — tied together
  7. degree — from a university
  8. vault — a safe
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. stock — shares
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. bound — certain
  13. key — in music
  14. degree — an amount
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. fork — in a road
  17. face — to point toward
  18. degree — temperature
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. face — part of the head
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. face — to confront
  23. key — for a lock
  24. stock — goods

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