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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. spell — a short time
  4. game — wild animals
  5. bound — tied together
  6. squash — to crush
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bound — obliged
  10. drill — a practice
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. bound — certain
  13. spell — magic
  14. stand — to bear
  15. cell — a phone
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. squash — the sport
  19. drill — the tool
  20. game — a match
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. spell — letters
  23. cell — in biology
  24. drill — army training

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