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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. degree — from a university
  3. cell — in biology
  4. swing — music
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — a phone
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. can — a tin
  12. rule — government
  13. can — a tin
  14. wind — moving air
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. wind — moving air
  17. row — a line
  18. swing — to play on
  19. degree — temperature
  20. row — to paddle
  21. swing — in golf
  22. rule — a law
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. degree — an amount

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