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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. bound — obliged
  3. squash — to crush
  4. current — of water
  5. squash — the sport
  6. bound — tied together
  7. land — ground
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. land — to come down
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. tear — to rip
  13. current — electric
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. current — happening now
  16. cell — in biology
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. bound — certain
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pound — a weight
  23. cell — a phone
  24. land — a country

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