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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. rash — hasty
  3. land — to come down
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — certain
  7. staff — employees
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. mate — a partner
  10. tear — from crying
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. staff — employees
  13. land — a country
  14. mate — to breed
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mate — a friend
  17. rash — a series
  18. staff — a stick
  19. roll — a list
  20. land — ground
  21. roll — a cake
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. tear — to rip
  24. trunk — of a tree

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