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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. bound — obliged
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. pit — a hole
  6. club — for golf
  7. cap — of ice
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — in golf
  11. branch — a division
  12. bound — tied together
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. cold — not warm
  15. club — a group
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cold — an illness
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. club — for dancing
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. pit — in a race
  24. vault — a safe

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