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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. bound — certain
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. rule — government
  5. cold — an illness
  6. bound — obliged
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. deal — to handle
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. hand — help
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a line of people
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. cold — not warm
  17. rule — a law
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. bound — tied together
  20. file — a document
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. hand — in cards
  24. deal — an agreement

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