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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 120 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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. mine — for digging
  4. lie — to recline
  5. row — to paddle
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. degree — from a university
  10. row — a line
  11. race — a contest
  12. degree — an amount
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. race — humankind
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bound — tied together
  19. degree — temperature
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. bound — certain
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. race — the arms race
  24. wind — moving air

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