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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. clip — for paper
  3. field — a subject
  4. bound — certain
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. clip — a video
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. bear — the animal
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. board — to get on
  11. bound — tied together
  12. spring — of water
  13. field — farmland
  14. cell — a phone
  15. board — a committee
  16. cell — in biology
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. spring — the season
  20. bound — obliged
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. field — for sport
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bear — the animal

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