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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 thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. bound — tied together
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. bound — obliged
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. cap — of ice
  7. spring — of water
  8. toast — bread
  9. cap — a lid
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. cap — a hat
  12. last — to go on
  13. clip — to cut
  14. last — final
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — a coil
  19. clip — for paper
  20. last — finally
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. clip — a video
  24. bound — certain

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