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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. bound — tied together
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. squash — the sport
  10. row — a line
  11. row — to paddle
  12. wake — a trail
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. squash — to crush
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. pound — a weight
  17. lean — to bend
  18. bound — obliged
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. bound — certain
  21. band — a music group
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. band — a ring
  24. cabinet — ministers

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