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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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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: chest · dip · foot · bound · clip · march · hide · toast

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. foot — a measure
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. dip — to sink
  11. march — the month
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bound — obliged
  15. toast — bread
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. clip — a video
  18. march — the month
  19. march — music
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bound — certain
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. clip — to cut

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