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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bound — certain
  3. pop — to visit
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pop — soda
  8. ground — crushed
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. pop — music
  11. bat — the animal
  12. chest — a box
  13. ground — the earth
  14. bound — tied together
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. chest — of your body
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. ground — a position
  21. bound — obliged
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. leaves — to go away

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