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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 116 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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. bound — tied together
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. march — the month
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bound — certain
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — the tool
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. dip — to sink
  16. bass — the fish
  17. hand — help
  18. march — the month
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. march — music
  21. bass — low music
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. hand — in cards

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