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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. chip — to eat
  5. staff — employees
  6. fork — in a road
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. spring — the season
  9. wound — an injury
  10. spring — a coil
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. spring — of water
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. bound — certain
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. staff — a stick
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bound — tied together
  19. rock — a stone
  20. bound — obliged
  21. staff — employees
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. chip — for betting

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