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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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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: wind · bound · chest · rule · season · pass · bowl · key

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. bound — tied together
  3. season — in sport
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. rule — a law
  6. key — for a lock
  7. rule — government
  8. key — the most important part
  9. bound — certain
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bound — obliged
  12. key — in music
  13. season — of the year
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. chest — a box
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. pass — to spend time

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