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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. can — to be able to
  3. object — to protest
  4. object — a thing
  5. date — the fruit
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bound — tied together
  8. sharp — clever
  9. can — a tin
  10. present — a gift
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bark — to shout
  13. present — the time now
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. can — a tin
  17. object — an aim
  18. present — there
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bound — obliged

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