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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. bound — obliged
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. face — to point toward
  5. cold — an illness
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. face — part of the head
  8. current — of water
  9. season — of the year
  10. cold — not warm
  11. season — in sport
  12. fine — high quality
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. fine — all right
  15. bound — tied together
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. face — to confront
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. bound — certain
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. current — electric
  23. rock — a stone
  24. current — happening now

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