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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. wind — moving air
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bore — to tire
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. march — music
  10. bound — certain
  11. bound — tied together
  12. net — after costs
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. net — for catching
  15. bat — the animal
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. net — in sport
  18. stand — to bear
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. march — the month
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. march — the month

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