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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bound — obliged
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. bound — certain
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bound — tied together
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. branch — a division
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. hand — help
  16. last — final
  17. sharp — clever
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. hand — in cards
  21. last — to go on
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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