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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. degree — an amount
  4. band — a music group
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. bound — certain
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bank — for money
  9. bank — for money
  10. mine — for digging
  11. band — a ring
  12. swing — in golf
  13. swing — music
  14. swing — to play on
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. bound — tied together
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bank — of a river
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. degree — temperature
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bound — obliged

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