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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. swing — music
  3. date — the fruit
  4. season — in sport
  5. spring — of water
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. season — of the year
  8. squash — the sport
  9. swing — in golf
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bass — low music
  12. bound — tied together
  13. spring — the season
  14. chair — a leader
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. squash — to crush
  18. swing — to play on
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. bass — the fish
  22. spring — a coil
  23. bound — certain
  24. bass — the instrument

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