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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. last — final
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. season — of the year
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. squash — the sport
  7. bound — obliged
  8. last — finally
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. season — in sport
  11. cap — a hat
  12. rule — a law
  13. cap — a lid
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. last — to go on
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. bound — certain
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. rule — government
  21. stem — to come from
  22. cap — of ice
  23. squash — to crush
  24. season — to add flavour

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