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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 · rash · game · saw · kid · wake · patient · key

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. key — the most important part
  4. game — wild animals
  5. kid — to tease
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. saw — the tool
  8. game — a match
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. rash — hasty
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. kid — child
  16. wake — a trail
  17. rash — a series
  18. key — for a lock
  19. bound — certain
  20. bound — tied together
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. key — 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