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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 116 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: mate · hide · bark · degree · race · band · bound · bank

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. bank — for money
  3. bound — tied together
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. mate — a friend
  6. bound — certain
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — to shout
  10. band — a ring
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. mate — to breed
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bank — for money
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. degree — an amount
  17. race — the arms race
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. race — humankind
  20. mate — a partner
  21. band — a music group
  22. bank — of a river
  23. degree — from a university
  24. race — a contest

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