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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. field — a subject
  6. chair — a leader
  7. pit — in a race
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. field — for sport
  11. fall — the season
  12. field — farmland
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bass — low music
  17. bound — certain
  18. cell — in biology
  19. fall — to drop
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. bound — tied together
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. bass — the fish
  24. pit — a hole

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