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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 116 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 · pitch · fork · saw · kid · root · press · degree

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. press — a publisher
  3. degree — an amount
  4. press — newspapers
  5. kid — to tease
  6. degree — temperature
  7. root — the cause
  8. bound — certain
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. root — of a plant
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. fork — in a road
  13. bound — tied together
  14. degree — from a university
  15. press — to push
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. root — of a word
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. kid — child
  24. pitch — a sports field

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