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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 120 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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. rash — a series
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bound — tied together
  5. degree — from a university
  6. craft — boats
  7. degree — temperature
  8. shower — rain
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. plane — a tool
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. shower — to wash
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. craft — a skill
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. rash — hasty
  22. degree — an amount
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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