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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: field · rest · stick · kid · spell · bound · rule · mug

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. mug — to rob
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. field — a subject
  7. mug — a cup
  8. spell — magic
  9. kid — child
  10. spell — a short time
  11. rest — what's left
  12. spell — letters
  13. field — farmland
  14. mug — a face
  15. rest — what's left
  16. kid — to tease
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. field — for sport
  19. bound — certain
  20. bound — obliged
  21. rest — a break
  22. rule — a law
  23. rule — government
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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