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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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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. face — part of the head
  3. season — of the year
  4. march — the month
  5. bound — obliged
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. bound — tied together
  9. row — to paddle
  10. face — to point toward
  11. march — the month
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. bound — certain
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. cell — in biology
  17. march — music
  18. wake — a trail
  19. face — to confront
  20. row — a line
  21. season — in sport
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. cell — a phone

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