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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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Word bank
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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mug — to rob
  5. present — there
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mug — a face
  9. content — the amount
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. bound — tied together
  13. season — of the year
  14. branch — a division
  15. bound — certain
  16. bound — obliged
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. season — in sport
  19. mug — a cup
  20. present — the time now
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. present — a gift

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