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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: season · stand · degree · racket · rule · bound · track · pop

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. season — of the year
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bound — tied together
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — certain
  7. pop — to visit
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stand — to bear
  10. degree — temperature
  11. rule — government
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. pop — music
  16. season — in sport
  17. track — a path
  18. rule — a law
  19. pop — soda
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. track — a song
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. season — to add flavour

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