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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 116 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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. bound — obliged
  5. clip — to cut
  6. field — farmland
  7. season — of the year
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. bound — tied together
  13. capital — money
  14. bound — certain
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. rule — government
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. rule — a law
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. capital — a city
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. clip — a video
  24. season — in sport

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