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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. bound — obliged
  4. last — to go on
  5. wound — an injury
  6. kick — in football
  7. bound — tied together
  8. staff — a stick
  9. degree — temperature
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — from a university
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. last — finally
  15. bound — certain
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wound — an injury
  18. last — final

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