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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. band — a music group
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. season — in sport
  5. bound — certain
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. track — a song
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the fish
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. track — a path
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. track — to keep track
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. season — of the year
  20. dip — to sink
  21. band — a ring
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bound — tied together
  24. dip — to dunk

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