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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mug — a cup
  4. rest — a break
  5. last — to go on
  6. bound — tied together
  7. mug — a face
  8. mark — a trace
  9. spell — letters
  10. field — farmland
  11. last — finally
  12. mug — to rob
  13. spell — a short time
  14. rest — what's left
  15. season — in sport
  16. season — of the year
  17. field — a subject
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. mark — a grade
  20. field — for sport
  21. last — final
  22. bound — certain
  23. spell — magic
  24. rest — what's left

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