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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. mate — to breed
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. clip — to cut
  7. snap — to click
  8. rock — a stone
  9. bound — certain
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. clip — a video
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. bound — tied together
  15. can — a tin
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. can — to be able to
  18. rock — music
  19. can — a tin
  20. mate — a partner
  21. cold — an illness
  22. mate — a friend
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. cold — not warm

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