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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. object — to protest
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. clip — for paper
  6. bound — obliged
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. object — a thing
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. bound — certain
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. bound — tied together
  15. object — an aim
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. clip — to cut
  18. season — of the year
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. season — in sport
  21. rash — hasty
  22. clip — a video
  23. rash — a series
  24. arm — a part of something

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