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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
468
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: degree · march · wound · bear · shower · bound · bowl · kick

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. degree — an amount
  3. shower — rain
  4. bound — certain
  5. bound — tied together
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. march — the month
  9. bear — the animal
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — to wash
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. march — the month
  15. wound — an injury
  16. degree — from a university
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. march — music
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. kick — in football
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. bound — obliged
  24. wound — an injury

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