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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. pop — soda
  4. swing — to play on
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bound — obliged
  10. chest — a box
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. swing — music
  13. swing — in golf
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pop — music
  16. deal — to handle
  17. bound — tied together
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wind — moving air
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. pop — to visit
  22. cell — a phone
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cell — in biology

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