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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. bound — certain
  3. bound — obliged
  4. rash — hasty
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bound — tied together
  7. land — to come down
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. current — of water
  12. current — electric
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. current — happening now
  16. rash — a series
  17. land — a country
  18. mine — for digging
  19. plane — a tool
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. land — ground
  24. rash — on the skin

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