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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: can · bound · plane · rush · ground · kid · degree · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bound — certain
  3. bound — obliged
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. degree — an amount
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. kid — to tease
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. can — a tin
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. ground — a position
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. degree — from a university
  14. kid — child
  15. rush — hurry
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. bound — tied together
  19. ground — crushed
  20. can — to be able to
  21. can — a tin
  22. ground — the earth
  23. degree — temperature
  24. plane — a tool

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