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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 116 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: season · pop · mine · wake · bound · drill · degree · trunk

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. pop — soda
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. degree — from a university
  6. pop — to visit
  7. drill — the tool
  8. bound — tied together
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — a trail
  12. mine — for digging
  13. pop — music
  14. degree — temperature
  15. season — in sport
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — army training
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. season — of the year
  22. bound — obliged
  23. degree — an amount
  24. season — to add flavour

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