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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 116 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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. bound — tied together
  5. charge — electricity
  6. dip — to sink
  7. fine — all right
  8. degree — from a university
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. bound — certain
  14. field — farmland
  15. field — for sport
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — an amount
  19. field — a subject
  20. charge — in control
  21. wake — a trail
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. charge — a price
  24. bound — obliged

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