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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. snap — to click
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. net — after costs
  6. degree — temperature
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. net — for catching
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rest — what's left
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. deal — to handle
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. rest — a break
  19. degree — an amount
  20. rest — what's left
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. degree — from a university
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. fan — a supporter

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