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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. bound — certain
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bound — tied together
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ball — a dance
  9. degree — temperature
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. ball — a great time
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. degree — an amount
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — of the year
  21. degree — from a university
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. plane — a tool
  24. plane — an aircraft

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