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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. bound — tied together
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bear — the animal
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bound — certain
  12. snap — to click
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. cell — in biology
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. cell — a phone
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. bound — obliged

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