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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. firm — steady
  3. bound — tied together
  4. plane — a tool
  5. bound — obliged
  6. fine — all right
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. staff — employees
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. fine — high quality
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. stock — shares
  14. bound — certain
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. staff — employees
  18. firm — decided
  19. stock — goods
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. firm — a company
  22. staff — a stick
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — the Cold War

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