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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. face — to point toward
  5. field — a subject
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. bound — obliged
  8. rock — music
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. band — a music group
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. bound — certain
  13. face — to confront
  14. fork — in a road
  15. face — part of the head
  16. field — farmland
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. rock — a stone
  23. band — a ring
  24. field — for 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