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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 116 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. hand — in cards
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. degree — temperature
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. can — a tin
  8. press — to push
  9. press — a publisher
  10. game — a match
  11. hand — help
  12. can — to be able to
  13. degree — an amount
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. race — a contest
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. race — the arms race
  19. press — newspapers
  20. game — wild animals
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. degree — from a university
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. race — humankind

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