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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. stand — to bear
  3. object — to protest
  4. rule — government
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. pop — music
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — to visit
  10. degree — temperature
  11. ground — crushed
  12. degree — an amount
  13. object — a thing
  14. object — an aim
  15. stock — goods
  16. stock — shares
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. degree — from a university
  19. rule — a law
  20. bound — tied together
  21. bound — certain
  22. ground — the earth
  23. ground — a position
  24. stand — for spectators

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