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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bound — obliged
  4. rule — government
  5. rash — a series
  6. mate — to breed
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. mate — a partner
  10. degree — temperature
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. bound — certain
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bore — to tire
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. sharp — clever
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bound — tied together
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. rash — hasty
  24. rule — a law

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