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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 120 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. current — of water
  3. bound — certain
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. bore — to drill
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bound — tied together
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. band — a music group
  11. spring — of water
  12. degree — from a university
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. spring — the season
  16. current — happening now
  17. kick — in football
  18. current — electric
  19. spring — a coil
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — to grow
  22. bore — to tire
  23. degree — an amount
  24. band — a rubber band

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