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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. drill — a practice
  3. fork — in a road
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. drill — the tool
  7. drill — army training
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. bound — tied together
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — a contest
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — music
  14. cap — of ice
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. cap — a hat
  17. race — humankind
  18. spring — the season
  19. cap — a lid
  20. bound — obliged
  21. capital — money
  22. capital — a city
  23. swing — in golf
  24. capital — a big letter

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