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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 120 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: board · cabinet · temple · march · present · degree · bound · game

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. march — music
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bound — certain
  6. march — the month
  7. present — a gift
  8. board — to get on
  9. march — the month
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. degree — from a university
  12. present — there
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bound — tied together
  16. degree — an amount
  17. game — wild animals
  18. game — a match
  19. board — a committee
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. present — the time now
  23. bound — obliged
  24. degree — temperature

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