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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: race · bark · hand · row · key · lie · bound · cell

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bound — certain
  5. key — in music
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bound — obliged
  9. cell — a phone
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. race — humankind
  12. key — for a lock
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. row — to paddle
  15. race — a contest
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. row — a line
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bark — to shout
  21. hand — in cards
  22. cell — in biology
  23. hand — help
  24. lie — to recline

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