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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bound — obliged
  4. band — a ring
  5. bound — tied together
  6. pass — a permit
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. court — of a king
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of law
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. degree — from a university
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. band — a music group
  16. pop — soda
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. prune — to trim
  20. degree — an amount
  21. degree — temperature
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pop — music
  24. pop — to visit

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