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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. pound — a weight
  4. bound — certain
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. bound — obliged
  8. chair — a leader
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. spell — letters
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. lean — to bend
  13. game — wild animals
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. game — a match
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. bound — tied together
  21. lean — thin
  22. spell — a short time
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. spell — magic

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