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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: degree · bass · jam · bound · craft · fan · wound · saw

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — temperature
  3. bound — tied together
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. craft — boats
  7. wound — an injury
  8. saw — the tool
  9. bass — low music
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. bound — obliged
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bound — certain
  17. degree — an amount
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. craft — a skill
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. wound — an injury
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. jam — a tight spot

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