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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. land — ground
  4. bank — for money
  5. chest — of your body
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. land — a country
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pop — soda
  11. bound — obliged
  12. plane — a tool
  13. bound — tied together
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. land — to come down
  16. date — the fruit
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chest — a box
  19. wake — a trail
  20. bank — for money
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. pop — music
  23. bank — of a river
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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