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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: bound · object · mine · mate · clip · wound · press · drill

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. clip — for paper
  4. press — a publisher
  5. object — an aim
  6. bound — tied together
  7. press — newspapers
  8. drill — a practice
  9. bound — obliged
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. object — to protest
  12. clip — a video
  13. object — a thing
  14. press — to push
  15. mate — a partner
  16. drill — the tool
  17. drill — army training
  18. mate — a friend
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — an injury
  21. clip — to cut
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. bound — certain
  24. mate — to breed

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