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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. bound — obliged
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. spring — the season
  5. staff — a stick
  6. track — to keep track
  7. drill — a practice
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. stock — goods
  11. fall — to drop
  12. stock — shares
  13. swing — in golf
  14. fall — the season
  15. staff — employees
  16. track — a path
  17. fall — to drop
  18. track — a song
  19. drill — army training
  20. bound — tied together
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — a coil
  23. drill — the tool
  24. staff — employees

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