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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: saw · clip · mug · bound · season · file · chair · hide

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. bound — certain
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. saw — the tool
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. file — a tool
  7. bound — tied together
  8. mug — a face
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. clip — to cut
  11. mug — a cup
  12. season — in sport
  13. clip — for paper
  14. file — a line of people
  15. clip — a video
  16. chair — a leader
  17. mug — to rob
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bound — obliged
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. file — a document
  24. saw — the tool

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