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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. lean — to bend
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — in sport
  6. ground — a position
  7. spring — the season
  8. season — of the year
  9. spring — of water
  10. date — the fruit
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — crushed
  13. bat — the animal
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bound — certain
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. bound — tied together
  20. lean — thin
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. lean — to rest against

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