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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. band — a music group
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bound — tied together
  6. band — a ring
  7. bound — obliged
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. wind — moving air
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. row — a line
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. bound — certain
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. row — to paddle
  21. wind — moving air
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — on a finger

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