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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. bound — tied together
  4. stand — to bear
  5. chest — of your body
  6. scale — in music
  7. spring — the season
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. spring — of water
  11. present — there
  12. chest — of your body
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. spring — a coil
  15. bound — obliged
  16. kick — in football
  17. bound — certain
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. branch — a division
  20. present — the time now
  21. chest — a box
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — for weighing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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