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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 116 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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. object — to protest
  5. bound — certain
  6. game — a match
  7. cold — an illness
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. kick — in football
  12. cap — of ice
  13. object — an aim
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. bound — tied together
  18. cap — a hat
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. game — wild animals
  21. cap — a lid
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. object — a thing
  24. cold — not warm

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