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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. cell — a phone
  3. spring — the season
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. spring — a coil
  6. mine — for digging
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. chest — of your body
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. scale — size or range
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bound — obliged
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. bound — tied together
  20. chest — a box
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. bound — certain
  23. chest — of your body
  24. spring — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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