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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 120 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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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: pit · lie · wind · bound · rule · march · bore · degree

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bound — certain
  3. degree — temperature
  4. rule — a law
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. bound — tied together
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. bound — obliged
  10. lie — to recline
  11. degree — from a university
  12. march — music
  13. rule — government
  14. march — the month
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pit — a hole
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bore — to tire
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. wind — moving air
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. pit — in a race

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