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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 · mug · last · lie · bat · snap · cell · bore

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. cell — a phone
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bound — obliged
  7. bat — the animal
  8. mug — a cup
  9. bound — tied together
  10. mug — to rob
  11. bound — certain
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. last — final
  17. last — finally
  18. mug — a face
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bore — to drill
  21. cell — in biology
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. snap — to click
  24. last — to go on

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