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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 120 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: cold · band · bound · chip · bulb · snap · bank · degree

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. bank — for money
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bound — tied together
  5. bound — certain
  6. cold — an illness
  7. degree — from a university
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. degree — an amount
  11. band — a music group
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. band — a ring
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bound — obliged
  16. chip — to eat
  17. snap — to click
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bank — for money
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bank — of a river

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