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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. bound — certain
  3. stand — to bear
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. season — of the year
  6. present — a gift
  7. key — the most important part
  8. bound — tied together
  9. content — the amount
  10. bound — obliged
  11. face — to confront
  12. season — in sport
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to point toward
  15. kid — to tease
  16. key — in music
  17. kid — child
  18. present — there
  19. content — happy
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. present — the time now
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. key — for a lock
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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