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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 120 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. bound — certain
  5. chair — a leader
  6. cell — in biology
  7. bound — obliged
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bore — to tire
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. bound — tied together
  13. snap — to click
  14. bore — to drill
  15. club — a group
  16. club — for dancing
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. club — for golf
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. temple — a place of worship

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