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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bound · ground · chest · season · sharp · board · calf · leaves

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. bound — certain
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — of the year
  8. bound — tied together
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. sharp — clever
  15. board — to get on
  16. season — in sport
  17. board — a committee
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — crushed
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. ground — the earth
  24. bound — obliged

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