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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. can — a tin
  3. squash — the sport
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. mug — to rob
  7. can — to be able to
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bound — obliged
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bound — certain
  12. land — ground
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. chest — of your body
  17. squash — to crush
  18. can — a tin
  19. mug — a face
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. mug — a cup
  23. bound — tied together
  24. swing — music

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