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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. bound — obliged
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to click
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bound — tied together
  14. saw — the tool
  15. bear — the animal
  16. file — a document
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. pound — a weight
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. bound — certain
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bear — the animal
  24. racket — a loud noise

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