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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: squash · chest · track · hand · bass · degree · bowl · bound

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bound — certain
  4. chest — a box
  5. degree — an amount
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — in cards
  11. squash — the sport
  12. track — a path
  13. bound — tied together
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. track — to keep track
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bound — obliged
  21. squash — to crush
  22. chest — of your body
  23. track — a song
  24. bass — low music

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