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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. race — a contest
  3. wound — an injury
  4. squash — to crush
  5. firm — decided
  6. bound — certain
  7. spring — of water
  8. race — the arms race
  9. net — for catching
  10. firm — a company
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. firm — steady
  14. bore — to drill
  15. net — in sport
  16. squash — the sport
  17. spring — a coil
  18. bound — obliged
  19. race — humankind
  20. bore — to tire
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. net — after costs
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. bound — tied together

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