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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. staff — employees
  3. bound — tied together
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. court — of a king
  6. staff — employees
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. bat — the animal
  9. season — in sport
  10. season — of the year
  11. staff — a stick
  12. court — of law
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bound — obliged
  16. stem — to come from
  17. scale — in music
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — what's left
  21. court — for sport
  22. rest — a break
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. scale — size or range

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