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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. bound — obliged
  5. kid — to tease
  6. race — the arms race
  7. prune — to trim
  8. race — humankind
  9. present — the time now
  10. kid — child
  11. prune — to trim
  12. land — to come down
  13. present — there
  14. present — a gift
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — music
  18. land — a country
  19. bound — tied together
  20. land — ground
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. pound — a weight
  23. race — a contest
  24. swing — to play on

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