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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 116 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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. fall — the season
  3. bound — obliged
  4. cold — an illness
  5. wake — a trail
  6. fall — to drop
  7. cold — not warm
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. swing — music
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. board — a committee
  15. lie — to recline
  16. swing — to play on
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. march — the month
  19. bound — certain
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. swing — in golf
  22. board — to get on
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. fall — to drop

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