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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — the animal
  6. present — there
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. rule — a law
  9. prune — to trim
  10. present — the time now
  11. hand — in cards
  12. present — a gift
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. rule — government
  16. hand — help
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. prune — to trim
  21. capital — a city
  22. bound — certain
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. capital — money

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