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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 · chair · clip · foot · pass · kick · nail · degree

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. kick — in football
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. foot — a measure
  8. clip — for paper
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. pass — a permit
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. clip — to cut
  13. chair — a leader
  14. degree — temperature
  15. degree — from a university
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. clip — a video
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. bound — certain
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bound — obliged
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. nail — for a hammer

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