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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'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. bound — obliged
  3. chest — of your body
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. stem — to come from
  6. bound — certain
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. board — a committee
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — money
  12. mine — for digging
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bound — tied together
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. chest — a box
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. board — to get on
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. chest — of your body
  23. capital — a city
  24. stem — of a plant

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