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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 120 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: key · bound · cold · hide · board · mark · mug · shower

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. shower — to wash
  4. cold — an illness
  5. key — in music
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. key — for a lock
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. shower — rain
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mug — to rob
  12. mug — a face
  13. bound — tied together
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mark — a trace
  16. key — the most important part
  17. bound — certain
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. mark — a grade
  20. board — a committee
  21. mug — a cup
  22. board — to get on
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. cold — the Cold War

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