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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: net · degree · band · drill · trunk · bound · ruler · tube

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. band — a music group
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. degree — an amount
  5. net — in sport
  6. tube — a container
  7. band — a ring
  8. degree — from a university
  9. degree — temperature
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. bound — certain
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. drill — the tool
  17. net — for catching
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — army training
  20. bound — obliged
  21. net — after costs
  22. tube — the underground
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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