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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: saw · patient · bound · last · degree · mug · clip · spell

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. last — to go on
  3. mug — a cup
  4. clip — a video
  5. degree — temperature
  6. degree — an amount
  7. mug — a face
  8. last — final
  9. bound — obliged
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. bound — tied together
  12. spell — letters
  13. degree — from a university
  14. clip — for paper
  15. spell — magic
  16. last — finally
  17. bound — certain
  18. clip — to cut
  19. saw — the tool
  20. spell — a short time
  21. mug — to rob
  22. saw — the tool
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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