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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ground · pit · pound · squash · hide · spring · degree · bound

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. spring — the season
  3. ground — crushed
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. ground — the earth
  6. spring — a coil
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. degree — temperature
  9. squash — to crush
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bound — obliged
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — tied together
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. ground — a position
  20. degree — from a university
  21. squash — the sport
  22. pit — in a race
  23. pound — a weight
  24. spring — of water

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