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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.

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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: bound · degree · racket · date · bass · cold · pit · ruler

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bound — tied together
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. cold — not warm
  6. pit — a hole
  7. cold — an illness
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. bass — low music
  12. degree — temperature
  13. date — the fruit
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pit — in a race
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. bass — the fish
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — an amount
  24. bound — obliged

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