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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 120 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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. cap — a hat
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. lean — to bend
  5. cap — of ice
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. vault — a safe
  9. cap — a lid
  10. pitch — completely
  11. press — a publisher
  12. bound — certain
  13. bound — tied together
  14. lean — thin
  15. press — newspapers
  16. spring — a coil
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. press — to push
  19. spring — the season
  20. dip — to sink
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. spring — of water
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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