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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 · game · sharp · hide · march · leaves · court · bound

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. court — of law
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. bound — obliged
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — from a university
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. game — a match
  11. march — the month
  12. degree — an amount
  13. game — wild animals
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. court — for sport
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. sharp — clever
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. court — of a king
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — certain
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. march — the month

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