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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. bound — certain
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. squash — to crush
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — a video
  8. staff — a stick
  9. shower — to wash
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. staff — employees
  12. squash — the sport
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. clip — to cut
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. rush — hurry
  18. scale — in music
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. bound — tied together
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. staff — employees
  23. shower — rain
  24. scale — size or range

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