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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  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. cold — not warm
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. mark — a trace
  6. bound — obliged
  7. bound — certain
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. craft — a skill
  10. mark — a grade
  11. craft — boats
  12. cold — an illness
  13. stock — goods
  14. perch — the fish
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. pound — a weight
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. row — to paddle
  22. stock — shares
  23. row — a line
  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