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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. cell — in biology
  3. charge — a price
  4. cap — a hat
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — a trail
  7. cap — of ice
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. field — farmland
  13. bound — tied together
  14. field — a subject
  15. charge — in control
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. field — for sport
  19. sharp — clever
  20. cell — a phone
  21. bound — obliged
  22. cap — a lid
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. charge — electricity

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