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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: hand · can · bat · race · board · bound · wake · cabinet

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. can — to be able to
  5. hand — help
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. board — a committee
  8. bat — the animal
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bound — tied together
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. can — a tin
  17. race — a contest
  18. race — humankind
  19. bound — certain
  20. board — to get on
  21. can — a tin
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wake — a trail
  24. race — the arms race

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