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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bound — certain
  3. march — the month
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. land — a country
  6. cell — in biology
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bound — tied together
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. chest — a box
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. cell — a phone
  18. chest — of your body
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. bound — obliged
  21. vault — a safe
  22. rash — a series
  23. land — to come down
  24. rash — hasty

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