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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — in sport
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. kid — to tease
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. bound — obliged
  12. kid — child
  13. bound — tied together
  14. dip — to sink
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — not warm
  20. season — of the year
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. chair — a leader
  23. cold — an illness
  24. foot — a measure

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