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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: cue · suit · row · bound · kick · degree · rock · land

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. suit — clothes
  4. suit — to fit
  5. degree — an amount
  6. row — to paddle
  7. suit — in cards
  8. land — ground
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. rock — a stone
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. land — to come down
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. cue — a signal
  15. row — a line
  16. bound — certain
  17. degree — from a university
  18. bound — tied together
  19. cue — for pool
  20. land — a country
  21. degree — temperature
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bound — obliged
  24. kick — in football

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