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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. bound — certain
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bound — obliged
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. row — a line
  7. bound — tied together
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. row — to paddle
  13. root — of a plant
  14. bear — the animal
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. content — the amount
  17. capital — a city
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. root — the cause
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. content — happy
  22. root — of a word
  23. bear — the animal
  24. capital — money

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