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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. degree — from a university
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. season — of the year
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. prune — to trim
  7. season — in sport
  8. spell — a short time
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. degree — an amount
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. chip — to eat
  14. chip — for betting
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. spell — magic
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. degree — temperature
  19. stock — shares
  20. spell — letters
  21. stock — goods
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. prune — to trim
  24. patient — a sick person

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