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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. rash — a series
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. degree — from a university
  7. season — in sport
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. shower — rain
  13. bat — the animal
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — temperature
  16. season — of the year
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. fall — to drop
  23. rash — hasty
  24. season — to add flavour

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