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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. fine — all right
  3. lie — to recline
  4. fine — high quality
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bound — tied together
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bulb — for light
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cold — not warm
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. band — a music group
  16. season — in sport
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. band — a ring
  20. bulb — for light
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. bulb — of a plant
  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