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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. rule — a law
  3. content — happy
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. rule — government
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. row — to paddle
  8. present — a gift
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. bound — certain
  11. row — a line
  12. bound — tied together
  13. cell — in biology
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. cell — a phone
  18. hand — help
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. present — the time now
  21. bound — obliged
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. hand — in cards

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