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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. lean — to bend
  4. tear — from crying
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. squash — to crush
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. bound — tied together
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. tear — from crying
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. squash — the sport
  20. tear — to rip
  21. bound — certain
  22. lean — thin
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. lean — to rest against

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