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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bound — tied together
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. wake — a trail
  5. bank — for money
  6. object — to protest
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. file — a line of people
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bank — of a river
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. file — a tool
  16. object — an aim
  17. file — a document
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bank — for money
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. cell — in biology
  22. bound — obliged
  23. object — a thing
  24. bound — certain

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