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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 116 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. fork — in a road
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. bound — obliged
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. mate — to breed
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. cell — in biology
  11. mate — a partner
  12. can — a tin
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. bound — tied together
  15. can — to be able to
  16. cell — a phone
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. capital — money
  19. bound — certain
  20. capital — a city
  21. can — a tin
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. ruler — for measuring

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