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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 120 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: cell · wind · season · field · root · object · club · bound

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bound — certain
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. object — a thing
  6. club — for golf
  7. root — of a plant
  8. cell — in biology
  9. field — farmland
  10. root — of a word
  11. club — a group
  12. bound — tied together
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. season — in sport
  15. season — of the year
  16. field — a subject
  17. club — for dancing
  18. cell — a phone
  19. field — for sport
  20. object — to protest
  21. root — the cause
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bound — obliged
  24. object — an aim

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