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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: ball · squash · hand · bound · season · board · degree · game

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. bound — tied together
  3. board — to get on
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. bound — obliged
  6. hand — help
  7. game — wild animals
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — in sport
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. board — a committee
  12. bound — certain
  13. hand — in cards
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. degree — from a university
  16. squash — to crush
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. ball — a dance
  19. degree — an amount
  20. game — a match
  21. degree — temperature
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. squash — the sport

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