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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 116 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. hand — in cards
  3. capital — a city
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. capital — money
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. dip — to sink
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. spell — magic
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. wind — moving air
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. sharp — clever
  16. hand — help
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. wind — moving air
  20. spell — a short time
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. bound — tied together
  23. bound — certain
  24. spell — letters

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