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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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Word bank
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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. mug — a face
  3. bound — obliged
  4. rash — hasty
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. bound — certain
  7. chair — a leader
  8. key — in music
  9. can — to be able to
  10. kid — child
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. rash — a series
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. kid — to tease
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. key — the most important part
  19. can — a tin
  20. mug — a cup
  21. bound — tied together
  22. key — for a lock
  23. mug — to rob
  24. wake — a trail

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