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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stick · saw · bound · snap · squash · land · spring · cap

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. bound — obliged
  3. bound — certain
  4. cap — a lid
  5. land — to come down
  6. spring — a coil
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. cap — of ice
  10. spring — the season
  11. cap — a hat
  12. land — a country
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. squash — to crush
  16. squash — the sport
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. snap — to click
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. spring — of water
  24. land — ground

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