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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. chip — for betting
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. mug — a cup
  6. bound — certain
  7. bound — obliged
  8. mug — to rob
  9. bound — tied together
  10. stock — goods
  11. pound — a weight
  12. wake — a trail
  13. band — a music group
  14. chip — to eat
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. cold — not warm
  19. band — a ring
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. mug — a face
  23. stock — shares
  24. cold — an illness

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