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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: bay · last · court · pitcher · rule · degree · bound · bank

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. last — finally
  3. bound — tied together
  4. last — final
  5. rule — a law
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — for money
  9. court — for sport
  10. degree — an amount
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. bound — obliged
  13. court — of law
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. court — of a king
  16. bank — of a river
  17. degree — temperature
  18. last — to go on
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. bound — certain

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