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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. bound — obliged
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. land — a country
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. land — ground
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. bound — certain
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. clip — a video
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — the earth
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. clip — for paper
  16. band — a music group
  17. bound — tied together
  18. ground — a position
  19. staff — employees
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. pound — a weight
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. band — a ring

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