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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. fall — the season
  4. degree — an amount
  5. rule — a law
  6. degree — temperature
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. spring — a coil
  9. rash — hasty
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. rest — what's left
  13. spring — the season
  14. date — the fruit
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rash — a series
  17. rest — what's left
  18. spring — of water
  19. rule — government
  20. rest — a break
  21. degree — from a university
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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