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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. can — to be able to
  3. bound — tied together
  4. can — a tin
  5. bound — obliged
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — a match
  9. cue — for pool
  10. row — a line
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. game — wild animals
  13. saw — the tool
  14. cue — a hint
  15. fork — in a road
  16. bound — certain
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. row — to paddle
  19. can — a tin
  20. wound — an injury
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. cue — a signal
  24. saw — the tool

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