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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: bound · cold · craft · bat · object · hand · chip · bulb

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. object — a thing
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. craft — a skill
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bound — tied together
  7. hand — help
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bound — certain
  10. craft — boats
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. object — to protest
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — an illness
  15. object — an aim
  16. chip — to eat
  17. cold — not warm
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. hand — in cards
  20. chip — for betting
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. hand — part of the body

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