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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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Word bank
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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  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. spell — letters
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. cold — an illness
  4. board — to get on
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bound — certain
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pass — a permit
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. season — of the year
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. board — a committee
  19. spell — a short time
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. spell — magic
  23. bound — obliged
  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