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

Word bank: cell · wave · chair · fork · rash · snap · hide · bound

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. bound — obliged
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bound — certain
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. bound — tied together
  10. fork — in a road
  11. chair — a leader
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. rash — hasty
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. snap — to click
  19. rash — a series
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. cell — a phone
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. hide — to keep secret

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