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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: cabinet · bore · key · band · date · bound · net · tube

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. bound — obliged
  3. tube — a container
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. key — the most important part
  6. bore — to drill
  7. bound — certain
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. date — the fruit
  10. bore — to tire
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. net — in sport
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bound — tied together
  16. net — for catching
  17. band — a ring
  18. key — in music
  19. key — for a lock
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. tube — the underground

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