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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bound · chest · jam · degree · pitch · ball · rest · wake

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. bound — tied together
  3. rest — what's left
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. bound — certain
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. degree — from a university
  8. ball — a great time
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. chest — a box
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. degree — an amount
  15. bound — obliged
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — a break
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. degree — temperature
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. pitch — completely
  22. chest — of your body
  23. wake — a trail
  24. chest — of your body

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