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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. race — the arms race
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. race — humankind
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. net — after costs
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. hand — help
  9. land — ground
  10. bound — obliged
  11. race — a contest
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bound — tied together
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. land — to come down
  17. net — for catching
  18. net — in sport
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. land — a country
  21. squash — to crush
  22. hand — in cards
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. squash — the 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