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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: object · bound · spell · board · bore · net · wake · pound

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. object — to protest
  3. bore — to tire
  4. board — to get on
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. spell — letters
  7. bound — obliged
  8. wake — a trail
  9. net — in sport
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. object — an aim
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. object — a thing
  14. pound — a weight
  15. net — for catching
  16. spell — a short time
  17. bore — to drill
  18. spell — magic
  19. bound — tied together
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. bound — certain
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. board — a committee
  24. board — a flat piece

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