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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. hand — in cards
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. lean — to bend
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. stock — shares
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. rule — a law
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. lean — thin
  14. hand — help
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. degree — an amount
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. bat — the animal
  19. rule — government
  20. degree — temperature
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — goods

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