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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. mug — a face
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. bound — obliged
  5. club — for dancing
  6. firm — decided
  7. bound — tied together
  8. capital — money
  9. mug — a cup
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. club — for golf
  12. land — ground
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — a city
  15. bound — certain
  16. clip — to cut
  17. pass — a permit
  18. mug — to rob
  19. club — a group
  20. land — to come down
  21. clip — for paper
  22. firm — a company
  23. clip — a video
  24. land — a country

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