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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: arm · bark · squash · face · degree · bound · shower · bowl

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. face — to confront
  3. bound — certain
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. degree — an amount
  6. face — to point toward
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. shower — rain
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. squash — the sport
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. bark — to shout
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. face — part of the head
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bound — obliged
  21. degree — from a university
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. squash — to crush
  24. bowl — to roll

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