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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. kick — in football
  4. track — to keep track
  5. game — a match
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. bound — tied together
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. rule — a law
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. pound — a weight
  12. cap — a lid
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. shower — rain
  15. game — wild animals
  16. cap — a hat
  17. bound — certain
  18. shower — to wash
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. track — a song
  21. cap — of ice
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. track — a path
  24. rule — government

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