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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. degree — from a university
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — not warm
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. squash — the sport
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. vault — a safe
  9. pound — a weight
  10. bound — certain
  11. degree — an amount
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. bound — tied together
  14. board — to get on
  15. degree — temperature
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. board — a committee
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. bat — the animal
  21. squash — to crush
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. pound — to hit hard

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