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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. craft — a skill
  3. chest — of your body
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. chest — of your body
  6. shower — to wash
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. craft — boats
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. face — to point toward
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. chest — a box
  16. bound — obliged
  17. object — an aim
  18. bound — tied together
  19. face — to confront
  20. rush — hurry
  21. object — a thing
  22. object — to protest
  23. face — part of the head
  24. mine — for digging

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