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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. row — a line
  5. bound — certain
  6. bat — the animal
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. row — to paddle
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — in cards
  11. ball — a great time
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bound — obliged
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. pound — a weight
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. ball — a dance
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. rush — hurry

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