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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: bound · court · rest · stand · shower · board · degree · can

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. bound — certain
  3. rest — what's left
  4. board — a committee
  5. can — a tin
  6. stand — to bear
  7. degree — from a university
  8. court — of law
  9. can — a tin
  10. degree — an amount
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. rest — a break
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bound — obliged
  17. board — to get on
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bound — tied together
  20. degree — temperature
  21. shower — rain
  22. court — for sport
  23. can — to be able to
  24. shower — to wash

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