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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 120 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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. squash — the sport
  3. squash — to crush
  4. cap — of ice
  5. degree — from a university
  6. fall — to drop
  7. court — of a king
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cap — a hat
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. cap — a lid
  13. degree — temperature
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. wind — moving air
  17. court — for sport
  18. wind — moving air
  19. fall — to drop
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. court — of law
  24. ruler — a monarch

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