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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. bound — obliged
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bound — certain
  6. tear — from crying
  7. drill — army training
  8. bound — tied together
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — a line
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. drill — the tool
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. row — to paddle
  15. current — happening now
  16. swing — to play on
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. swing — in golf
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. current — of water
  21. drill — a practice
  22. swing — music
  23. tear — to rip
  24. arm — part of the body

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