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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: last · spring · bound · net · mate · leaves · squash · patient

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. bound — certain
  3. spring — of water
  4. mate — to breed
  5. squash — to crush
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. mate — a friend
  8. bound — obliged
  9. last — to go on
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. net — for catching
  14. spring — a coil
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. net — after costs
  17. last — final
  18. net — in sport
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. squash — the sport
  21. spring — the season
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. last — finally
  24. bound — tied together

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