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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: pit · pop · bound · leaves · mine · file · content · lie

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mine — for digging
  4. lie — to recline
  5. content — happy
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. pop — to visit
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. pit — a hole
  10. content — the amount
  11. pop — soda
  12. file — a line of people
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. file — a document
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bound — obliged
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. file — a tool
  23. bound — certain
  24. pit — in a race

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