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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bound — obliged
  3. hand — help
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. kid — child
  7. bound — certain
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bound — tied together
  10. lie — to recline
  11. chest — of your body
  12. land — to come down
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. land — ground
  15. hand — in cards
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. kid — to tease
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. toast — bread

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