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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 were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. face — part of the head
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bound — tied together
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. spring — the season
  8. rest — what's left
  9. chest — of your body
  10. face — to confront
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. chest — a box
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. spring — a coil
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. face — to point toward
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bound — certain
  20. rest — what's left
  21. spring — of water
  22. rest — a break
  23. mine — for digging
  24. rock — music

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