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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. mate — a partner
  3. cell — a phone
  4. drill — the tool
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. mate — a friend
  7. row — to paddle
  8. squash — to crush
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. squash — the sport
  11. bound — tied together
  12. row — a line
  13. cell — in biology
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. current — happening now
  16. mate — to breed
  17. drill — army training
  18. bound — certain
  19. current — of water
  20. stock — goods
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. current — electric
  23. stock — shares
  24. bound — obliged

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