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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. stock — shares
  4. present — there
  5. mine — for digging
  6. pop — soda
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. pop — to visit
  11. stock — goods
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. present — a gift
  16. pop — music
  17. bound — obliged
  18. deal — to handle
  19. chair — a leader
  20. present — the time now
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. bound — tied together
  24. mine — belonging to me

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