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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. net — in sport
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — to bend
  5. race — a contest
  6. face — part of the head
  7. face — to confront
  8. race — humankind
  9. bound — tied together
  10. march — the month
  11. march — music
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bound — obliged
  14. net — after costs
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. face — to point toward
  18. lean — thin
  19. net — for catching
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. march — the month
  22. race — the arms race
  23. pass — a permit
  24. hide — to keep secret

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