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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bound — obliged
  3. pop — to visit
  4. chair — a leader
  5. hand — in cards
  6. game — wild animals
  7. spring — a coil
  8. pop — music
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spring — of water
  11. spell — magic
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. pop — soda
  15. bound — tied together
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. hand — help
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. spring — the season
  21. game — a match
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. bound — certain

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