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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. cold — not warm
  3. press — to push
  4. shower — rain
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. rush — hurry
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. game — a match
  10. shower — to wash
  11. press — a publisher
  12. press — newspapers
  13. bore — to tire
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. can — a tin
  17. game — wild animals
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bound — obliged
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — to be able to
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bore — gave birth

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