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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
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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: mark · bound · hand · ruler · degree · leaves · tear · band

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. degree — from a university
  5. bound — certain
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — help
  8. degree — temperature
  9. mark — a trace
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. band — a ring
  15. degree — an amount
  16. bound — obliged
  17. tear — to rip
  18. band — a music group
  19. bound — tied together
  20. tear — from crying
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. mark — a grade

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