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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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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. court — for sport
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. hand — help
  6. bass — low music
  7. court — of law
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. chest — of your body
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. court — of a king
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. chest — of your body
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — the fish
  22. chest — a box
  23. hand — in cards
  24. ruler — a monarch

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