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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — for paper
  4. bound — obliged
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pit — in a race
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. bound — certain
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. swing — to play on
  13. pit — a hole
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. swing — in golf
  17. clip — a video
  18. degree — temperature
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bound — tied together
  23. swing — music
  24. pound — a weight

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