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

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bat — the animal
  4. mark — a trace
  5. rule — a law
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bound — tied together
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. board — to get on
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. rule — government
  15. bound — certain
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. degree — an amount
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. board — a committee
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. mark — a grade

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