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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 · bore · pop · wave · clip · degree · fine · lash

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. pop — music
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. clip — a video
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. fine — high quality
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. bore — to drill
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. pop — to visit
  13. degree — an amount
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. fine — all right
  16. bound — tied together
  17. degree — from a university
  18. bore — to tire
  19. clip — to cut
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bound — certain
  22. bound — obliged
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. pop — soda

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