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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. saw — the tool
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. charge — electricity
  5. pound — a weight
  6. saw — the tool
  7. degree — from a university
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. content — happy
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bound — certain
  13. charge — in control
  14. degree — temperature
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. charge — a price
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. rash — a series
  19. degree — an amount
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bound — obliged
  24. content — the amount

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