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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bound — tied together
  4. squash — to crush
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. game — wild animals
  10. clip — to cut
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. clip — for paper
  15. capital — money
  16. deal — to handle
  17. clip — a video
  18. game — a match
  19. capital — a city
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. bound — obliged
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. saw — the tool
  24. squash — the sport

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