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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. last — to go on
  3. land — a country
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. land — to come down
  7. last — finally
  8. perch — the fish
  9. band — a ring
  10. band — a music group
  11. dip — to sink
  12. land — ground
  13. bound — obliged
  14. pit — a hole
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. stem — to come from
  21. bound — tied together
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. last — final
  24. pit — in a race

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