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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 116 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 reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. spring — a coil
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kid — child
  5. bound — certain
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bass — the fish
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. kid — to tease
  13. fall — to drop
  14. lie — to recline
  15. prune — to trim
  16. spring — the season
  17. bound — obliged
  18. spring — of water
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. bass — low music
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. fall — the season

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