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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. bound — obliged
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. drill — a practice
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bound — tied together
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. cap — of ice
  18. drill — army training
  19. fall — the season
  20. cap — a lid
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. bound — certain
  23. fall — to drop
  24. drill — the tool

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