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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. bound — certain
  3. fine — high quality
  4. chair — a leader
  5. field — farmland
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bound — obliged
  9. mate — to breed
  10. tear — to rip
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. bear — the animal
  13. field — a subject
  14. tear — from crying
  15. mate — a partner
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cue — a hint
  21. tear — from crying
  22. field — for sport
  23. bear — the animal
  24. mate — a friend

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