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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. degree — temperature
  7. board — to get on
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. degree — from a university
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — after costs
  13. squash — the sport
  14. shower — rain
  15. cold — an illness
  16. net — for catching
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. board — a committee
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. cold — not warm
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. degree — an amount
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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