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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. last — finally
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. spell — a short time
  5. last — final
  6. spring — of water
  7. spring — the season
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. spell — magic
  10. last — to go on
  11. pop — soda
  12. bound — tied together
  13. spell — letters
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. pop — music
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — humankind
  18. chair — a leader
  19. bound — certain
  20. spring — a coil
  21. race — a contest
  22. bound — obliged
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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