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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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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 · bound · can · stock · land · board · saw · swing

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. board — a committee
  3. saw — the tool
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. board — to get on
  6. swing — to play on
  7. land — to come down
  8. can — to be able to
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. stock — goods
  11. can — a tin
  12. stock — shares
  13. hand — help
  14. bound — certain
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. can — a tin
  19. saw — the tool
  20. swing — music
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. bound — obliged
  23. swing — in golf
  24. hand — in cards

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