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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. court — of law
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. court — for sport
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. degree — temperature
  7. last — to go on
  8. kid — child
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. degree — an amount
  12. rash — hasty
  13. last — finally
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — a series
  16. shower — rain
  17. last — final
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. degree — from a university
  20. shower — to wash
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. kid — to tease
  23. court — of a king
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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