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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bound — tied together
  3. spring — of water
  4. mate — a partner
  5. season — of the year
  6. fine — all right
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fine — high quality
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. mate — to breed
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. dip — to sink
  14. bound — certain
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. spring — a coil
  19. season — in sport
  20. spring — the season
  21. bound — obliged
  22. mate — a friend
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. season — to add flavour

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