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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. rest — a break
  3. fall — to drop
  4. degree — an amount
  5. degree — from a university
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. kick — in football
  9. degree — temperature
  10. fall — the season
  11. rush — hurry
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. stand — to bear
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. rest — what's left
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. rest — what's left
  21. fall — to drop
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. ruler — for measuring
  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