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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. net — for catching
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. key — in music
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bank — for money
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. bound — obliged
  10. file — a document
  11. bank — for money
  12. key — for a lock
  13. file — a line of people
  14. fine — all right
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. net — after costs
  17. fine — high quality
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. file — a tool
  20. mine — for digging
  21. key — the most important part
  22. bank — of a river
  23. tear — to rip
  24. net — in 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