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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. bound — certain
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. mate — a friend
  7. mate — to breed
  8. clip — a video
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. mate — a partner
  11. pound — a weight
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. clip — for paper
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — the animal
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. clip — to cut
  23. bound — tied together
  24. wave — of the sea

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