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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: bound · wind · deal · kick · last · stick · scale · can

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. deal — to handle
  7. last — final
  8. bound — obliged
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wind — moving air
  14. can — a tin
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. can — to be able to
  17. scale — size or range
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. bound — certain
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — finally
  22. kick — in football
  23. bound — tied together
  24. scale — in music

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