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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. mate — a partner
  3. march — the month
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. bound — certain
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. cell — a phone
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. mate — a friend
  11. bound — obliged
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. kick — in football
  16. mate — to breed
  17. cell — in biology
  18. march — music
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. chest — of your body
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. march — the month
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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