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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: perch · patient · bound · degree · bowl · last · season · plane

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bound — certain
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. last — finally
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. last — final
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. bound — tied together
  14. plane — a tool
  15. bound — obliged
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. degree — an amount
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. degree — temperature
  20. season — of the year
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. last — to go on
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. season — in sport

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