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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. capital — money
  3. bound — obliged
  4. ground — a position
  5. ground — crushed
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. ground — the earth
  10. wax — to grow
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. toast — bread
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. cell — in biology
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. staff — employees
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. bound — tied together
  21. staff — employees
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — a phone
  24. staff — a stick

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