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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. spell — letters
  4. spell — magic
  5. toast — bread
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. root — of a word
  8. wind — moving air
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. bound — certain
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spring — a coil
  17. root — the cause
  18. bound — tied together
  19. spring — of water
  20. wind — moving air
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. root — of a plant
  24. spring — the season

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