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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. clip — for paper
  4. fine — high quality
  5. spell — a short time
  6. bound — certain
  7. clip — a video
  8. spell — letters
  9. rest — what's left
  10. fine — all right
  11. band — a ring
  12. bound — tied together
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. spell — magic
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. clip — to cut
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bound — obliged
  20. rest — a break
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wake — a trail
  24. band — a music group

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