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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. cap — of ice
  4. drill — the tool
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. drill — a practice
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. cap — a hat
  9. field — farmland
  10. chair — a leader
  11. field — for sport
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. cap — a lid
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. drill — army training
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. content — happy
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. content — the amount
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bound — certain
  24. field — a subject

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