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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: bat · bound · press · roll · nail · club · degree · spring

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. bound — obliged
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. bat — the animal
  6. club — for dancing
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. press — newspapers
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spring — of water
  11. club — for golf
  12. club — a group
  13. roll — a cake
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. degree — from a university
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. degree — an amount
  18. press — a publisher
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. degree — temperature
  21. press — to push
  22. bound — tied together
  23. spring — the season
  24. bound — certain

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